Flipboard finally arrives on Windows 8.1, with Live Tile support and more

By Trevor Mogg November 15, 2013

flipboard lands windows 8 1 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Flipboard has finally landed for Windows 8.1, allowing owners of devices such as Microsoft’s Surface slates to finally discover what it is about the news reader app that makes it such a hit with tablet users on other platforms.

Developers have built the app from the ground up to match the Windows 8.1 look and feel, and take advantage of some the platform’s specific features, so users can, for example, add Flipboard as a Live Tile to their tablet’s start screen.

Taking this a step further, the team has also made it possible to pin your favorite Flipboard magazines and sections to the start screen, enabling even speedier access to your favorite content.

As you’d expect, a range of gestures offer plenty of functionality – for example, you can subscribe, refresh, and edit by swiping up, or access modules such as ‘contributors’ and ‘people also read’ by swiping down within a section.

Microsoft’s newest operating system also offers a split-screen experience it calls Snap View, allowing you to read a Flipboard article with one eye while the other watches a movie. Or something like that.

Check out the video below for a brief overview of Flipboard for Windows 8.1.

Judging by the popularity of Flipboard on other platforms such as iOS and Android, the Windows 8.1 version will be welcomed with open arms by those using, for example, Microsoft’s flagship Surface Pro 2 tablet.

Since launching in 2010, the free app, lauded for its elegant user experience and ease of use, has been downloaded to around 90 million mobile devices.

A feature rolled out earlier this year that allows users to create their own digital magazines for sharing, or private use, proved a particular hit with the Flipboard community, with 100,000 magazines created within its first 24 hours of going live.

Another new feature, rolled out just this week, enables users to utilize the magazine tool for the creation of e-commerce catalogs for wish lists or as a way of creating a shopping list of gifts. Retail partners are also beginning to build shopping catalogs for Flipboard, further evidence of the startup’s growing interest in the mobile commerce space.

Flipboard for Windows 8.1

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Contributing Editor

Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…

Computing

Best printer deals: 10+ cheap printers on sale as low as $79

An HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e all-in-one printer rests on a white table with plants and a thumb drive beside it.

Even though going digital has become easier than ever, there is still a need to print, especially if you're a small or medium business. Luckily, the world of printers hasn't slowed down at all in the past few years, so whether you need to print character sheets for your D&D campaign or receipts for your business, there are a lot of printers to pick from. In fact, some of the best printer brands on the market have a lot of solid options, including in the budget range for those who don't need a ton of printing. And while it may be hard to find a good deal on the best printers, we're pretty sure our collection of deals will get you pretty close.
Canon Pixma TR4722 -- $79, was $99

While it isn’t one of the best all-in-one printers, it’s certainly one of the most affordable. There’s something to be said about a printer that can come in at such a low price yet still offer quality printing. This printer will work well in any home, apartment, or dorm room setting. It even goes beyond printing and is capable of making copies, scanning, and faxing. It connects easily to your devices with built-in wireless connectivity, and it can print at a rate of about nine pages per minute monochrome and four pages per minute color.

Computing

Save $450 on this 17-inch HP gaming laptop with an RTX 4060

An HP Omen 17 laptop on a desk.

Over at HP, there are some excellent gaming laptop deals with $450 off the HP Omen 17t gaming laptop. Usually it costs $1,700, but right now you can buy the gaming laptop for $1,250 so you save $450 off the regular price. A great deal for anyone who wants a mid-range gaming laptop for less, let’s take a look at what it offers before you tap the buy button below.

Why you should buy the HP Omen 17t
HP isn’t listed on our look at the best gaming laptop brands but it’s still well worth considering thanks to the Omen range being pretty good for gaming. This particular model has a 13th-generation Intel Core i7-13700Hx processor paired up with 16GB of memory and 512GB of SSD storage.

Computing

Best VPN deals: Save on NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and Surfshark

A close-up of a computer monitor displaying a generic VPN.

There are a lot of things online that might require the use of VPN, whether it's avoiding something like geoblocks, or trying to protect your identity online. Either way, VPNs have become ubiquitous these days, and some of the best VPN services provide you with a suite of services beyond just a VPN. That can include things like adblocking or, in the case of something like Proton, potentially a whole suite of services such as email and cloud storage. Whatever you're looking for, though, there's likely a great VPN for you, which is why we've gone and collected the best VPN deals across the board so that you don't have to do the extra legwork.

Nord VPN 12-month basic subscription -- $69, was $124