Official Al Jazeera App for Windows 8
Al Jazeera has launched their official Al Jazeera app for Windows 8. It shows latest and top news from Al Jazeera. The best part of this app is that you can watch Al Jazeera channel LIVE on Windows 8. The app provides English version of Al Jazeera channel, and all the news are in English too. Al Jazeera app for Windows 8 provides all sort of content, like, Latest News, Sports News, Spotlight, Opinion, Blogs, and Latest Shows. You can even watch the Latest Shows online in this app.
This Al Jazeera app for Windows 8 does not shows any ad. The interface is very good, and of course, content is the best. If you have been using CNN, Fox News, or other News app for Windows 8, but want to get a more global insight into news, then you definitely need to try Al Jazeera app for Windows 8.
Get Al Jazeera app for Windows 8:
You can get this app from Windows 8 Store by using the link available at the end of this review. The download size is less than 2 MB. The app is available in News category of Windows 8 Store. The app does not requires any logins or sign-ups, nor there are any country restrictions. Just download and install the app and start enjoying latest Al Jazeera news from around the globe.
Various Sections of Al Jazeera app for Windows 8:
Al Jazeera app is nicely divided into various sections. The app has horizontal scroll, in line with design philosophy of Windows 8. Here are the various sections available in this app:
Watch Al Jazeera LIVE on Windows 8:
The best part I like in this app is that you can watch Al Jazeera LIVE in this. “Watch Live” section is the first section of the app. When you click on the play button in this, it will start playing Al Jazeera LIVE. You can either play Al Jazeera within the embedded player, or you can make it full screen as well. I found streaming to be quite good and there wasn’t any buffering. It automatically adjusts between HD and SD quality based on your internet speed. The embedded player provides volume control as well.
See Latest Al Jazeera News:
As you scroll to the right, the next section is Latest News. This section, as the name implies, shows the Latest News. The news refresh automatically. I found the latest news available here to be almost in line with the ones available on Al Jazeera website. Click on any news to read complete news.
In Depth News:
The next section is for In Depth news. This is supposed to show a detailed analysis of various news items. Unfortunately, for me, couple of news items didn’t show any content, and only image was visible. However, some of the news worked perfectly fine.
Sports News on Al Jazeera:
This section will attract lot of sports fans. This shows global news for lot of sports. Click on any news to see its details. I was hoping to see video clippings of sports as well in their news, but it showed only text / images in the news. I hope Al Jazeera adds some video clips related to sports in this app for Windows 8.
Spotlight and Opinion Sections:
These sections show Spotlight and Opinion news from Al Jazeera. The Opinion section worked completely find and had some great content. However, when I clicked on any news in Spotlight section, it only showed news headline, summary, and an image. The main content was missing. It behaved in similar manner as In Depth news section. Probably a bug.
Al Jazeera Blogs on Windows 8:
Blogs section on this app shows latest blogs from Al Jazeera. I really enjoyed reading them. I noticed an interesting bug here: in couple of news items, the entire content was repeated twice. This was not the case with all the blog entries, but I noticed this in two of the four blogs that were displayed on the homepage of this app. It doesn’t causes any problem, though, and I thoroughly enjoying reading the content.
Latest Al Jazeera Shows:
Last section in the app is Latest Shows from Al Jazeera (English). You can click on the section header to see more shows. Just click on any show and it will start playing. As is the case with Al Jazeera LIVE, the streaming speed here is pretty good. I didn’t see a switch between HD / SD here, though.
My Opinion of Al Jazeera app for Windows 8:
I have to start by giving kudos to Al Jazeera for making such a fantastic app for Windows 8. What I love most in this app is the feature to watch Al Jazeera LIVE. The content is always great, in line with high quality news that Al Jazeera provides. There are a couple of bugs in the app, but I am sure Al Jazeera would quash them quickly.
If you want to experience unbiased news, do try this app.