Mihăiță Bamburic

Last night, Germany won against Argentina in the World Cup 2014 final. It was a good game, with, dare I say, an expected outcome for those who watched both teams closely during the competition. But, for tech enthusiasts, there is a second winner, and that is Microsoft's Bing.

Through the Windows Phone 8.1 personal assistant, Cortana, Bing predicted the winners in 15 out of the 16 World Cup 2014 games in the knockout stage. It only failed to foresee that The Netherlands would win against Brazil in the fight for third place. This remarkable achievement shows to prove that, contrary to what some might believe, Bing really has what it takes to shine when the pressure is on.

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Let's face it: there are only two major app stores in the mobile space. One is Apple App Store and the other is Google Play. That is due to their huge app selection, which was long passed the one billion apps mark in each case, and the quality of the available offerings, which often tops that of other app stores.

On the iOS side of things, there is virtually no competition due to the platform's closed nature. On Android, however, Google Play's success stems from the popularity of Google-vetted devices, which tops that of handsets running forked versions of the operating system (that are not approved by Google). Still, one vendor had the potential to give Google Play a run for its money -- Samsung.

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After months of waiting, Nokia Lumia 930 is finally available. That is, of course, unless you are living in US, where Microsoft will not make the Windows Phone 8.1 flagship officially available. Sure, you can buy Lumia Icon instead, as it offers pretty much the same specs, but what if you are not, or not do want to be, a Verizon customer?

The first option is to import Lumia 930 from Europe, where it is sold by major retailers, some of which offer international shipping. Clove, which is based in UK, carries the smartphones, in black, orange and white, at a price of £362.5 (which is about $621) without any local taxes. Or, you can head over to Expansys US, which sells Lumia 930 for not much more.

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After being announced in late-February, BBM finally landed in Windows Phone Store earlier this week. The messaging app is not yet generally available though, as it was published as a private beta. But BlackBerry is giving impatient BBM fans and prospective users the opportunity to join an "external" testing program.

Ahead of the public release, BlackBerry also showcases what the first BBM iteration can do on Windows Phone. First off, the Canadian maker has designed the app so it feels and looks, per BlackBerry's own words, like a native Windows Phone offering. That is a significantly different approach to what it has done with BBM for Android and iOS, both of which look much like the BlackBerry OS counterpart.

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Microsoft's Mobile division just released Video Tuner, a new Windows Phone 8.1 app that gives users the ability to quickly edit videos right on their smartphones. The free offering is a Nokia Lumia-exclusive, at least for now, meaning that some platform users will be unable to install it.

Microsoft says Video Tuner offers "basic, yet powerful" tools, which include mundane ones like crop, flip, mirror, rotate, speed change and trim, as well as more advanced features like the option to add a soundtrack and tweak the sound level.

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Following the launch of Windows Phone 8 in late-2012, Microsoft's smartphone platform has significantly increased its market share, reaching more consumers in more regions across the globe. Its rise can be attributed, for the most part, to sales of low-end handsets, like the affordable Nokia Lumia 520 and Lumia 625, which are prevalent in emerging markets.

So, it should come as no surprise that emerging markets make up roughly half the list of the 20 largest Windows Phone markets, according to a new report from Windows 8 and Windows Phone advertising network AdDuplex. The leader of the pack, however, is US, with 11 percent of the user base.

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Even though Android can run paid apps without any problems whatsoever, the same cannot be said about Android Wear. Google's new operating system for wearables fails to install anything but free offerings, effectively preventing developers from making money.

That is not much of a problem now, as most Android Wear-designed apps are free. But, as the platform gains more traction, this could severely impact developers' interest. Google, however, has decided to reveal a workaround.

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Twitter may have an official Windows Phone app, but the offering is sorely lagging behind its Android and iOS counterparts in the features department. That is because the updates come only a couple of times per year, and, even then, they fail to bring the latest goodies on the platform.

Luckily for those who are willing to put up with the offering, Twitter has finally released a new update for its Windows Phone app, the first one to come in 2014. And to show just how much it cares about the platform and its users, Twitter has not even announced the update on its blog (but, Microsoft did).

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I have been waiting for BBM to make its triumphal arrival in Windows Phone Store for quite a while now. Its launch was revealed in February. Android and iPhone users are luckier, as the messaging app already launched on those platforms in the fall of 2013. But it now looks like Windows Phone users might soon also be able to join the party, and exchange PINs.

BlackBerry has published the BBM app for Windows Phone, but sadly for interested users it is not yet available for everyone to download, as it now undergoes private testing. That means only a select few can install it. Still, some progress is better than no progress at all, especially for those rocking a smartphone running the tiled operating system.

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Smartwatches are not hugely popular today, but the big names in the tech industry continue to jump on the bandwagon. At I/O 2014 in June, Google announced the first iteration of its operating system for wearables, Android Wear, and today LG reveals that its first smartwatch to be based on it, G Watch, is now available.

G Watch is one of three Android Wear smartwatches announced last month at Google's yearly conference, with the other two coming from fellow makers Motorola (Moto 360) and Samsung (Gear Live). LG's offering goes for sale on Google Play and, worldwide through "key" retailers.

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Consumers looking to purchase a high-end Windows Phone 8.1 smartphone only have one option to consider right now -- Nokia Lumia 930. It comes with all the right features for a device of flagship status, like a powerful processor, large screen, solid camera and wireless charging. It was announced in early-April, but it finally goes on sale this week.

A lot of Windows Phone enthusiasts are waiting for Lumia 930 to hit store shelves, myself included, as it is the first Nokia-branded Windows Phone 8.1 device to come with respectable specs in a decently-sized package. It can be argued that it is the natural replacement for those Lumia 920 users looking to upgrade.

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Starting today, consumers looking for a large tablet have one more option to choose from as LG rolls out its 10.1-inch G Pad across the globe. The slate is part of the South Korean maker's budget-friendly lineup, which was introduced in mid-May.

G Pad 7.0 was the first of LG's new slates to debut on the market, less than a month ago. Its bigger sibling, G Pad 10.1, is available first in US, with other markets -- Europe, Asia and Latin America -- to follow shortly, later this month.

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As the third-most popular smartphone platform, it is difficult for Windows Phone to attract as many top developers as Android and iOS do through its tiny market share. As a result, it is not uncommon for popular titles to be unavailable in Store long after their launch on Google Play and Apple App Store. Sometimes, popular titles do not arrive at all. It is a sad state of affairs, as it directly affects the reach Microsoft's platform can enjoy. But, wait, it gets worse.

A new comparison reveals that of the 25 top free offerings in Apple App Store, Windows Phone Store only offers six of them: Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Facebook, Pandora, Spotify, and WhatsApp. Of the remaining 19 titles, 13 are games. I honestly expected to see Windows Phone missing a couple of apps, but definitely not as many. Put differently, 76 percent of the 25 top free iOS apps are not available officially on Windows Phone. It is surreal.

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Google gains some control over the distribution of Android updates by pushing new features and changes directly through Google Play, quickly reaching a significant part of the user base without getting manufacturers and mobile operators involved in the process.

This is how Google Play Services 5.0, announced late last month at the I/O 2014 conference, is also making its way to Android users. The upgrade, which is rolling out now, targets both end users and developers, introducing new tools, features and APIs.

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Last month, at its yearly I/O developer conference, Google introduced Android Wear, a version of the popular open-source operating system designed for wearables, like the LG G Watch and Samsung Gear Live smartwatches. Connecting such devices to Android handsets is, as usual, a companion app, that Google just launched.

The app, called Android Wear, gives users the ability to manage their wearables, allowing them to adjust the preferences for voice commands (which play a key role in the Android Wear user experience), tweak notification settings (which, again, is an important feature for the platform), and of course configure the devices from the comfort of their Android handsets.

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