If you have an Android phone, you've probably installed an app or two. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to run them on your Windows PC? BlueStacks App Player makes this possible for certain apps.

BlueStacks App Player is the alpha version of an emulator that lets you use use Android on PC. It works a bit like a widget. When clicked, BlueStacks App Player will display the ten apps that have already been pre-installed, which are mostly games.

BlueStacks App Player's interface is easy to navigate. You can install new applications by clicking the "Get More Apps" button. Currently, there are more than 25 apps you can install this way. Hopefully, the number will grow as BlueStacks App Player develops.

The BlueStacks App Player team is currently taking emails for volunteer signups for an upcoming beta release as well. You can add your name to the list on the program's official website.

BlueStacks App Player is onto a good start when it comes to running Android apps on your PC.

Download BlueStacks App Player 0.7.12 Beta in Softonic

Adobe Reader has been in existence for over a decade and has gone through various evolutions during this time. One result of this is that it has been increasingly loaded with plug-ins and extensions which mean that it's consistently criticized as being bloated and slow.

The truth about Adobe Reader's speed

It is true to a certain extent that the extra plug-ins and extensions can make Adobe run more slowly. Adobe Reader is still a PDF reader that has much to offer though. With the latest version of Adobe Reader, Adobe have addressed some of the speed issues and the memory footprint has been improved consistently throughout the development of Adobe Reader XI.

Interface and stand-out features

This version of Adobe Reader is not only slightly faster, but also displays a clearer, simpler interface that makes it easier to use. Adobe Reader XI still features the classic tools from previous versions (Zoom, Text selection, Snapshots and Read out loud), but now it also includes renewed features such as the ability to leave comments as sticky notes. A new feature you’ll find in Adobe Reader X is the Share tool, with which you can easily share the document by email or via the Adobe SendNow service.

Built-in security precautions

If you were worried about security issues in Adobe Reader, fear not: Adobe Reader XI is probably the safest version ever released, thanks to the new Protected Mode than loads images, code and 3D objects in a special area in memory, isolated from the system.

Adobe Reader XI is undoubtedly an important update in the history of this popular PDF reader – an essential tool to open, read and print PDF documents.

Download Adobe Reader XI 11.0.03 in Softonic

Features

Thanks to a straightforward, uncluttered interface BitTorrent appears as a user friendly torrent client that beginners will feel comfortable with. We particularly appreciated the integrated search box to look for files on the BitTorrent website. Once you’ve found the torrent you want, download it to your PC, open it up inside BitTorrent and let the client do the rest. The speed at which you download will depend on the number of seeds, that is people who have the complete file and are sharing it. The more seeds there are the quicker files will download.

You can set multiple torrent downloads and the downloading speed is fairly quick. It’s easy to configure the client and we suggest choosing the right port and setting upload and download rate limits to avoid hogging your bandwidth. It’s also good to set your downloads by priority to monitor more precisely how your torrents are doing.

Using BitTorrent

The file you want to download is cut up into small segments shared by users, creating what is called a swarm, and does not go through a central server, significantly reducing the bulk of file transfers. The BitTorrent client is actually the first P2P application to use this technology and became immensely popular when it was released. Torrents are considered by online users as a great way to download recently anything from movies to operating systems.

Competition

Compared to the exhaustive Azureus, BitTorrent is very simplistic. It doesn’t provide half as many statistics and doesn’t let you customize the interface. Integrating a search box is a great idea, but it limits searches to the BitTorrent website, not considered the most thorough source by torrent aficionados.

Conclusion

If you’re a newbie to the torrent world, BitTorrent is a good bet. It’s safe, stable and sharp. Associated with the huge database of legal torrents that is the BitTorrent website, it makes for a very rich P2P experience. Advanced users will probably frown upon its lack of options but others should give it a try.

Download BitTorrent 7.8.0.29676 in Softonic

Operating system, web browser, media player... Microsoft had everything covered, except for a security application. Until now, with the release of Microsoft Security Essentials.

After some months in beta stage, Microsoft has launched the final version of its security application, though I have to say Microsoft Security Essentials hasn't changed that much in the final release. It still features a simple, clear tabbed interface with four main areas in which the user can take a look at the system's security status, update virus and spyware definitions, check the history of previously detected items, and tweak the program's settings, respectively.

Microsoft Security Essentials includes three types of scan - quick, full, or customizable. They can be scheduled to run at a give time or particular location, and can be modified to work when the computer is not actually in use. Handily, Microsoft Security Essentials automatically updates its database, and is fully integrated with Windows Explorer and the Windows Firewall. It also boasts a system restore point, in case you need to undo any over-enthusiastic cleaning.

Microsoft Security Essentials is Microsoft's first attempt at a standalone security application for home use. Given its simplicity and suitability for beginners, it probably isn't the best choice for more advanced users or professional network administrators, but for the average user, it covers all the bases. Bear in mind, however, that Microsoft Security Essentials doesn't disinfect files - it only deletes them in case of infection.

Microsoft Security Essentials is a gentle introduction to the sometimes complicated world of home computer security.

Download Microsoft Security Essentials 4.2.223.0 in Softonic

Features

avast! Free Antivirus is loaded with tons of features. From the home tab you can gain quick access to your system status, virus scan, software updater, stats, and the market. Features like the firewall and SafeZone require a premium subscription.

The software updater that's included with avast! Free Antivirus alerts users about outdated applications that are installed but only offers a link to the program page to download the latest update. Paying for a premium subscription will allow you to update your apps within the application. There's even an option to update automatically in the paid versions of avast!

avast! Free Antivirus offers more than just virus protection. The application also includes "cloud services," which gathers information from other avast! users to compare the reputation of similar files. These updates are constantly streamed to and from avast! so users don't have to worry about downloading updates.

New to avast! Free Antivirus is the Market where you can purchase additional features and services. The app itself is very good at reminding users how many features are missing so the Market makes it even more tempting to upgrade. Purchases can be made directly inside the application.

Usability

Using avast! Free Antivirus is very straightforward. Features and sections of the application are clearly marked with short explanations about what each feature does.

Like with many other antivirus applications, the amount of options and features is a little overwhelming. There are icons in the Security tab that are clearly marked with a green status light indicating everything is working as it should. This makes it easy to see what parts of the application require user action.

For the most part, avast! Free Antivirus is an application that you can configure and forget about. The program will display a popup if anything needs your action.

Quality

avast! Free Antivirus is well designed with tons of features. While it's not as simple as it could be, it works well and is completely free. It's nice that avast! Free Antivirus doesn't include an annoying tool bar, but it does install a web extension to monitor malicious links while you're browsing.

While avast! Free Antivirus excels as an antivirus application, it doesn't do much in the way of being a one-stop-shop for all your computer maintenance needs. Other apps like IObit's Advanced Systemcare with Antivirus offer more features that will make sure your computer is running its fastest.

Scans were performed quickly but not the best we've seen. This really depends on your hardware and how many files you have on your computer.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, it's easy to see what avast! Free Antivirus remains at the top of our download charts. The amount of features that free users have access to is amazing. While it's annoying that the app nags you to upgrade to a paid subscription, it's a small price to pay for a well designed antivirus solution that's completely free. Now if only avast! could include some computer maintence features.

What's new

Download avast! Free Antivirus 8.0.1489 in Softonic

The EverNote utility features versions for many different operating systems: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Windows Mobile, WebOS and more. It lets you capture and sync anything you throw at it, from notes to images, media or passwords. All your information is stored in the program and you can organize it in so called “notebooks”, as well as using tags to categorize.

Using EverNote is really simple. The program displays tips for the most important functions and is also thoroughly documented. The pleasant interface in EverNote, with a clean, eye-catching design, makes it even easier to use.

Now that we can access the internet from anywhere and on multiple devices, having a synced copy of all your information available at all times is crucial. If you have EverNote installed on all your devices – desktop computer, laptop, mobile phone - all it takes is an internet connection and a press of the Synchronize button from the menu to ensure that you have the same information stored on all of them.

EverNote is a very promising application that captures, stores and syncs any sort of information on all your devices.

Download EverNote 4.6.5.8353 in Softonic

Baidu PC Faster is a free lightweight security optimization software launched by Baidu which gathers "health check", "win update”, “cleaner”, ”speedup”, ”cloud security”, ”toolbox” and ”PC APP store” with simple interface and it’s easy to operate. It aims at providing users with an ideal system optimization solution.

Baidu PC Faster aims at providing PC users with an ideal system optimization solution.It is applicable to all computer users.

Download Baidu PC Faster 3.2.0.25 in Softonic

Typing lessons for home keys, neighbor keys, capitalization and more. Practice exercises for problem words, typing drills, prose and poems. Initial skills test used to determine your current level. Test typing skills, speed and accuracy. Keyboard highlighting shows correct finger placement. Sound and color highlighting notify you of mistakes. Printable course completion certificates. 10 key number pad lessons. Quick and easy operation.

Perfect for people of all skill levels from beginners to professionals, KeyBlaze starts with basic lessons on the home keys and neighboring keys, and works though capitalization, punctuation and numbers

Download KeyBlaze Free Typing Tutor 2.11 in Softonic

Ubuntu epitomizes everything that open source software is all about - free, quality software that works well and looks good. The latest version of Ubuntu "Maverick Meerkat" is packed with new features aimed at bringing Ubuntu to a wider market by making it easier than ever to use.

This download is for the Windows installer version of Ubuntu which installs Ubuntu on your system just like any other application you might install in Windows. It's the easiest and safest way of installing Ubuntu for the first time because you can easily remove it if you find you don't like it. If you do like it, you can download the desktop version which you'll then have to transfer to a CD or USB stick to install correctly.

Ubuntu allows you to do everything that Windows allows you to do with bonus that everything from the word processor to the e-mail client is free and it's fast. Ubuntu comes with Mozilla Firefox preinstalled although you can choose Google Premium from the fantastic Ubuntu Software Centre. One of the big stars of Ubuntu is Open Office which provides you with everything that Microsoft Office has. The IM client is Empathy IM and the mail client is Evolution Mail although you can install Skype and Thunderbird if you prefer. Other apps included in Ubuntu include Me Menu which gives you access to Facebook, Twitter and Identi.ca plus The GIMP, Flickr and Shotwell for image editing.

The major innovation in 10.10 however is the integration of a music store. Ubuntu's music player includes an integrated store, so you can buy and download new tracks. In addition, Ubuntu One's file-syncing means you can stream your music uninterrupted to your Android device or iPhone. This file syncing capability extends to other files and folders too. For video fans, you can still watch clips in YouTube, iPlayer, and MSN Player as well as play your own videos with Movie Player or you can use Pitivi to edit your videos. For game fans, there's lots of games to choose from in the Ubuntu Software Center including puzzles, adventures, strategy games and more - all for free.

One of the major benefits of Ubuntu however is simply its awesome speed. If you're used the the sluggishness of Windows, you're in for a treat. However, the major downside of Ubuntu is that it can be hard to get components in your PC to work with it. There is no driver center as such, meaning finding drivers to run your WiFi card, mouse-pad etc can be very hard. However, most newer laptops and PCs should have no problems being supported from the start.

Ubuntu is a fantastic example of how open source software can compete with the big guns. If you can get it working smoothly on your PC, you may never look back.

Download Ubuntu 13.04 in Softonic

Demonoid sets apart from the few competitors by its simplicity, convenient installation and use, faultless operation, the integrated online support, and program interface available in 7 languages.

Demonoid will become irreplaceable software for everyday use for all fans of high-quality free music.

Download Demonoid 3.7 in Softonic

With support for WinXP, Vista, and Win7 as the popular operating systems, Final Media Player is all you will need to watch video and play audio.

Download Final Media Player 2012 Update 1 in Softonic

Avira Free Antivirus 2013 is the free – for personal use – version of Avira Antivir Premium; this means there are a few advanced features unavailable, like the virus filter for email or for web browsing, but the program is as powerful and efficient as its big brother.

Avira Free Antivirus 2013 installs in a few seconds and starts protecting your system in real time right away. It includes all the tools and options you would expect from an antivirus these days, such as different types of scan, support for scheduling, automatic updates, and a quarantine area for suspicious files.

On the downside, Avira Free Antivirus 2013 is let down by a somewhat rough interface that feels like it was designed ten years ago and never restyled: simple to use, but too plain.

Looking for an efficient, uncomplicated antivirus tool? Avira Free Antivirus 2013 may be a good choice.

Download Avira Free Antivirus 2013 13.0.0.3640 in Softonic

Adobe AIR is a cross-operating system runtime that opens up much more possibilities to both developers and everyday computer users.

Adobe AIR allows developers to create new web applications using HTML, XML, Javascript and Flex. What's more they aren't limited to using Adobe's library, but can create, share and use their own to create specific web applications.

For users, Adobe AIR gives access to new and exciting rich internet applications (RIA) which can be run straight from their desktop. These use very little memory, are usually quick to launch and execute and have very smooth animations.

A quick visit to the Adobe Showcase Gallery and you get an idea of the sort of applications that are being developed for Adobe AIR: a Google Analytics reporting suite, a Twitter desktop client, a movie discovery tool and much more. Of course, you can also find apps that are not that good, but thankt to Adobe AIR the possibilities are endless and really depend on the creativity of developers.

Adobe AIR contributes to the web app revolution by helping designers and developers create all sorts of Internet-based apps.

Download Adobe Air 3.8 in Softonic

Adobe Flash Player is an essential plugin for your browser that allows you to view everything from video to games and animation on the web.

Features

Adobe Flash Player 10 includes a range of interesting additions and improvements when compared to previous versions. Top of that list is the inclusion of support for the H.264 video codec and the HE-AAC audio codec, which together offer a much richer, higher-definition picture along with crystal-clear sound. Introducing these capabilities in Adobe Flash Player with only slightly reduced performance looks set to trigger another revolution in web video, as HD movies are already an important element on YouTube - and they look and sound great!

Quality

Adobe Flash Player 10 irons out some of the problems that previous versions have suffered from (like security and stability issues), as well including support for ActionScript 3.0. It also makes fantastic 3D graphics possible. This makes for more dynamic and interesting navigation, games and interactivity on websites.

Conclusion

Adobe Flash Player 10 represents a leap forward in terms of quality as well as stability and security. It's therefore a highly recommended download for all users.

Download Adobe Flash Player Firefox, Safari, Opera 11.8.800.42 (Firefox) in Softonic

The program has simple, intuitively clear interface. The tools of the program allows to get result in several clicks. The program shows good speed of processing. You get result of excellent quality at low cost of the license.

Amateur photographers, professionals of a photo or any one person who wishes to improve his own photos

Download Fusion 2.4.7 in Softonic

NextGen Media Player remains one of video players that is light on system resources and handles DVDs as well as most video formats flawlessly. The app supports the majority of media formats, including AAF, 3GP, 3GP2, 3GPP, H261, H263, H263I, H264, MOV, VOB, GIF, ASF, AVCHD, AVI, CAM, DAT, DSH, FLV, M1V, MKV, M2V, FLA, FLR, SOL, M4V, MATROSKA, WRAP, MNG, MPG, QUICKTIME, MPEG, MPEG-4, MP4, MP4V, MXF, ROQ, NSV, OGG, RM, SVI, SMI, SWF, WMV.

All in all, thanks to its extensive support for media files, playlists and multiple customization's, NextGen Media Player can easily become the player of choice for many users.

Download NextGen Media Player 1.0.17 in Softonic

It is easy to operate, free to download and offline. The interface of the program is intuitive and easy to use. The main window is split into three parts: one with the source language's list of words from which you can choose, another one where the source word appears after selecting it and another one where the target language word appears after translation.

Anyone who works with translations from one language to another could benefit from increasingly complex dictionaries, because there are so many words with varied, subtle meanings, that the interpreting process may become confusingly difficult.

Download Sheels Hindi to English Dictionary 1 in Softonic

Key Features about this ePub to Mobi Converter software: •Convert ePub files to Kindle Mobi format with ease. The ePub to Mobi Converter allows you to easily and quickly convert your ePub books to Mobi. •Batch Conversion Mode. You can add more than one ePub books to the program and convert them to Kindle/Mobi Books at one time. Save much of your time. •Fastest Conversion Speed. Super fast conversion speed and the kindle mobi output ebooks are high quality as source ePub files.

•Easy to use. The user-friendly interface of the ePub to Mobi Converter makes the operation quite easy for both beginners and advanced users. After a few clicks, this magic software will do the rest work for you.

Download ePub to Mobi Converter 1.40.5.2 in Softonic

Media conversion ultimate solution, convert any videos and DVDs to any video and over 100 devices like iPhone, iPad, cell phone, tablet, media player, etc. Rip any copyright protected DVDs Convert any videos (computer video / web video / camera video /...) Batch conversion - 10X faster speed Simple operation - 3 steps convert your media to over 100 formats Video clips, effects

This is media conversion software that support converting video and ripping DVD disc/ISO/Folder. This is ultimate solution for every user's home media conversion.

Download Aoao Video Converter Ultimate 2 in Softonic

Convert all videos in one software without quality loss, convert video to iPhone/iPad/iPod/Android/Tablet/... The Special functions: Convert any videos (computer video / web video / camera video /...) Batch conversion - 10X faster speed Simple operation - 3 steps convert your video to 100+ formats

Must-have Video Software to Organize Your MKV M2TS AVCHD AVI MP4 YouTube Videos, whatever who you are, if you need video conversion, this is right choice.

Download Aoao Movie Converter 4.5 in Softonic