Happy New Device Year! Try these apps for your new Windows Phone or Windows 8 Device..

Happy New Year!

I hope the holiday break treated you well and you managed to find some time for a little R&R.  I took a wee trip to Napier, NZ, to see the family between Christmas and New Years, and miraculously managed to avoid all the bad traffic.  

Were you a good IT Pro this year?  Did Santa leave a new device under the tree for you?  By all accounts there were many waking up to new Windows Phones and Windows 8 devices this Christmas!  With the Nokia Lumia 520 going for around NZ$180 and an array of awesome tablets from both Microsoft and OEM's on special there were plenty of good deals to be had.

So now you have that new phone, or tablet, you're wondering what apps to install.  There are a few suggestions down the page, including a few apps from fellow New Zealand Game and App studios. I'd encourage you to check them out and if you like them, please rate them in either the Windows Phone store, or the Windows 8 store.

Now that i have all these new devices on my network, how do I manage them?

So a bunch of users are turning up in January and demanding to connect their new phones and tablets to your network in order to access company resources while on the move.  You want to allow this, but you also want to extend the protection you give to corporate devices out to these new BYOD devices.  How do you do that?

There are a couple of options:  Windows Intune  and  Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 .

Both Windows Intune and System Center have the capability to manage the following devices:

• Windows
• Windows RT
• Windows Phone 8
• Apple IOS (iPhone and iPad)
• Android

Features available on managed devices include the ability to monitor devices, enforce policies and compliance, and provide the ability to remote wipe data and/or devices.

If you're interested in hearing more about either product then please try the following resources:

• Microsoft System Center 2012 R2 Evaluation for IT Pro's 
• Windows Intune Free Trial for IT Pro's
• Microsoft Virtual Academy - free online training resource - System Center R2 Configuration Manager & Windows Intune
• IT Camps - we're running these over the next few months.  Keep your eyes out for an upcoming TechNet Flash for details

Here's wishing you a great 2014,

Regan

@nzregs

Windows 8 Apps
	Twitter	Offical twitter app for Windows 8
	Facebook	Official Facebook app for Windows 8
	Fresh Paint	A great and realistic painting app from Microsoft
	Skype	The offficial Skype app for Windows 8
	Where's my Water	A great game from Disney and suitable for the kids.  Currently FREE!
	NZ Herald	Get the very best of the NZ Herald at your fingertips
	Bee Leader	Bee Leader - It's busy time! An awesome game from NZ Game Studio \@FlightlessNZ
	Major Mayhem	He's got an itchy trigger finger, some scratchy stubble, and a fondness for shooting dudes in the face. 48 levels of non-stop action from Indie  NZ Game Developer \@AntonyBlackett at Rocket Jump.
	Yellow NZ	Access New Zealand's largest business directory in style, with the official Yellow®NZ app for Windows.
	Metrotube	The #1 top rated YouTube app brought to you by fellow kiwi's \@LazywormApps
	Into the Dead	Into the Dead throws you into the gruesome world of the zombie apocalypse. A great game brought to you by NZ Game Studio \@PikPokGames
Windows Phone Apps
	Twitter	Official Twitter app for Windows Phone
	Facebook	Official Facebook app for Windows Phone
	Skype	Official Skype app for Windows Phone
	Untappd	Social discovery and check-in app for BEER. Lets you easily find and rate nearby craft beers and see what's trending.
	Vine	Vine is the best way to see and share life in motion. Create short, beautiful, looping videos in a simple and fun way for your friends and family to see
	Instagram	The official Instagram app has arrived on Windows Phone!
	Authenticator	An authenticator app for providing 2-factor authentication codes for Windows Live, Google, Facebook etc
	Free Tuner	Free Tuner is a chromatic tuner for your musical instrument.   Works great with guitar!
	Color Me Free	A great colour by numbers/shapes/dots type of drawing app for the kids, and big kids, and really big kids.
	ASB Bank	To make your mobile banking simpler and easier than ever, ASB’s Mobile Banking app is absolutely loaded with smart features.
	NZ Herald	The New Zealand Herald Windows Phone App gives you the latest news and most important stories of the day - hand-picked by our editors. It allows you to truly immerse yourself in the latest news in a highly visual and engaging way.
	Bee Leader	Bee Leader - It's busy time! An awesome game from NZ Game Studio \@FlightlessNZ
	Into the Dead	Into the Dead throws you into the gruesome world of the zombie apocalypse. A great game brought to you by NZ Game Studio \@PikPokGames
	AA Roadservice	Murphy's Law says your car will break down when and where you least expect it – so be prepared by downloading the free AA Roadservice App
	Auckland Traffic	Traffic maps with congestion info for the Auckland streets and motorways. Live tile (paid version) for quick status check.
	Yellow NZ	Access New Zealand's largest business directory in style, with the official Yellow®NZ app for Windows Phone