With December quickly approaching, it's time for the holiday season. And with that comes music, food, fun, and holiday movies and music. Here are the best Windows 10 apps to help you prepare for the holidays.
Microsoft To-Do
This time of year, you'll want to make your own lists and check them twice. Microsoft To-Do is available across a number of devices, so you can make your shopping and to-do lists on your PC at home, keep up to date with them on your iPhone or Android device and maybe sneak in a glance as you tick off some holiday shopping on your lunch break.
Microsoft To-Do is the successor to Wunderlist and has been gaining many of the features of its parent while also gaining integration with Microsoft Launcher's beta. One of the most important features is list sharing which helps you stay on the same page with people tackling the same to-dos as you.
It's available for free on Windows 10 and also has versions on iOS and Android.
See in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
Spotify
There's probably no medium that has more holiday themed content than music. Spotify allows you to listen to all the popular hits as well as lesser known holiday songs. So, whether you like Justin Beiber or Bing Crosby you can get in the mood for the season.
Spotify has a free version that has ads or an ad-free version that also gets you access to offline content.
Also, if you're looking for a gift, I recommend checking out a Spotify family plan. It's not much more than a personal account and all of your family members can have their own account.
The Spotify app is free, though the Xbox One and Windows 10 versions are separate in the Microsoft Store.
- See Spotify for Windows 10 in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
- See Spotify for Xbox One in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
hueDynamic
A lot of gadget lovers get smart lights this time of year. With hueDynamic you can set your colorful Phillips Hue lights to match a roasting fire or you can sync them to your holiday music with disco mode.
When I reviewed hueDynamic earlier this year I said it was better than Phillips' own software and that's held up since I initially tested it. It enhances hardware to do more through excellent software and I think it's worth a look for anyone invested in the Phillips Hue ecosystem.
It costs $6.49 and is available for Windows 10.
See in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
AccuWeather
You can dream of snow this time of year all you'd like, but you won't know if it's coming without checking a good weather app. AccuWeather has a sleek design that lays out the upcoming weather clearly. It also has a nice Live Tile for the lovers of the Start Menu.
For when Winter weather is too extreme to enjoy, AccuWeather has extreme weather alerts.
Weather apps are a dime a dozen and to be honest there are many good ones, but I love the minimal design of AccuWeather and have used it for a long time across my devices. It's available for free on Windows 10.
See in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
Recipe Keeper Pro
One of the best things about the holidays is the food. Every family has their own traditional recipes. Recipe Keeper Pro helps you keep track of recipes by letting you import them from a variety of sources.
When you have a recipe you love, you can add its ingredients to your shopping list within the app or and add it to the app's built-in meal planner.
I think Recipe Keeper Pro is one of the best recipe apps on Windows 10, but it does come at a relatively high price if you want to sync it across multiple platforms.
It's available for $4.99 on Windows 10. There are also versions available on Android and iOS, but you'll have to pay for them again even if you've already purchased the Windows 10 version.
See in Microsoft Store (opens in new tab)
Wrapping things up
How do you use technology to prepare for the holidays? Let us know in the comments.
