Editor’s Note: This is a contributed post by Ricky Shah, an IT enginner and professional blogger from India. He usually writes on anything related to technology on his tech blogs Geniusgeeks and Windows Phone blog Withwindows.

In a pursuit to replace BlackBerry as third largest mobile OS ecosystem, the software giant Microsoft has jumped into the cut-throat competition already ruled by the likes of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. Unfortunately, many people have abstained from adapting to groundbreaking technology due to lack of apps and games present in WP7 marketplace. However, many of us have failed to realize that it takes some time for an ecosystem get out of the incunabulum stage.

This post is aimed to focus in enlisting some of the best Windows Phone apps to take Panoramic pictures. With panoramic capturing enabled apps, users can swiftly take panoramic pictures or elongated photos without the need of any special skills or equipment.

Third-Party Panorama Apps

Photosynth

[Free] Baked in its own backyard, Photosynth by Microsoft is amongst the most downloaded panoramic apps from the Windows Phone marketplace. Photosynth has a capability to take full 360-degree panoramic images which is a must have feature in any top-notch application. What sets it apart from other is that it allows you to take 360 degree panoramic captures both horizontally and vertically.

Afterwards, users can stitch these images together according to their needs. The other notable feature is its sharing option. It lets you share those screenshots to Twitter, Facebook and even on Bing. Sharing your screenshot on Bing may give you wide exposure and a much needed thrust to your photography career.

AutoPanorama

[Free, Pro: $0.99] AutoPanorama is a third-party app that gives you total control over images. It provides a transparent layer of previous images, which you can align with the next screenshot to create the perfect panoramic photo. This, of course, requires you to have steady hands while capturing the image. However, it also results in a better image alignment.

Unlike other applications of this category, it takes Auto Panorama almost no time to stitch the images to form your panorama. It also comes with functions like transparency-level adjustment, flash mode on/ off and red-eye reduction. There is also a plan for automatic picture-taking capability in the next iteration. You can save panoramas to the camera roll, upload them on Facebook or send them to friends via email/ text.

Pano

[$2.99] Pano lets you unleash the photographer in you. Already an award-winning iOS app, it now comes to the Windows Phone community. Pano lets you take 360-degree panoramas with up to sixteen photos to stitch. It also provides a semi-transparent guide to align each photo perfectly – the end result is something you want to brag about.

Advanced alignment, blending and the colour correction algorithm ensure that you get near-perfect quality photos in all kinds of exposure.The absence of transparency control is an impediment when you take panoramic screenshots in an outdoor environment. Do note that it also takes a while for the stitching to complete.

Ztitch

[Free] Instead of stitching the images automatically, Ztitch places them in a 3D space from where you can pick and stitch them to create a 360-degree panorama.

It also serves as a Panoramic image viewer. Users can export images to Photo Hub or share them on Facebook, Flickr etc. Overall, Ztitch is a decent application that serves the purpose.

OEM Exclusive Apps

Samsung Photo Studio is a dedicated photography app for Samsung Windows Phone users. It comes with heaps of options along with the capability to take Panoramic pictures.

(Image Source: Windows Phone Central)

Nokia’s exclusive product, Creative Studio is by far the best app that exists in Windows Phone ecosystem. It has an abundance of filters and effects to make your photo stand out from the crowd. It also offers the panorama image capturing function. Users are also given an option to either share it via social networking sites or save them to the phone’s internal memory.

(Image Source: Windows Phone Central)

HTC has an in-built panorama tool integrated into the main camera app. It provides a horizontal line as a separator between two consecutive shots. There are no settings to play with. It will stitch three consecutive images to turn into a panorama then it will be saved into Pictures Hub automatically. From there, you can share it with social networking sites or save it to SkyDrive.

Related posts:

1. 20 Essential Apps For Your Android Phone
2. Top 20 Android Photography Apps
3. 5 Top Windows 8 Features You’ll Love
4. Top 5 Free Screen Recording Softwares For Windows

QR codes can be used to store text information ranging from URLs to application links. These QR codes can be generated online or via a smartphone app. Most of the time, these generators create just the basic black and white QR codes as these are the safest designs to go with – one box out of place and the reader might not be able to translate the stored information, making the QR code useless.

But then there are some creative designers who go beyond the call of duty to produce really stunning artworks like the ones you see in this post: 40 Gorgeous QR Code Artworks. You can create your own customized and colored QR Codes yourself, but if you are not into design but still want an interesting QR Code, then Visualead can help.

Design A QR Code With Visualead

Visualead allows you to turn any design or logo into a working, scannable QR Code. First register for an account at the site.

There are 3 steps to creating your ‘designer’ QR code:

Step 1: Choosing A Design

First, you need to upload the design or logo you want to use with your QR Code. Five types of image formats are supported, namely JPG, PNG, TIF, BMP and GIF (of 72 to 600 dpi).

Alternatively, you can also select from one of their many ‘stock’ designs which included popular brands like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

Step 2: Selecting The Type Of QR Code

After an image is uploaded, you will be redirected to the editing page to select the type of information (see below) your QR code is to carry.

If you choose to include the ‘Facebook’ profile, you need your Facebook profile or group ID. For example, to display hongkiat.com’s Facebook Page in the QR Code, we just put in ‘hongkiatcom’ instead of the full URL: ‘http://www.facebook.com/hongkiatcom’.

The QR Code can also carry other contact info such as ‘Skype Username’ in the code. When someone scans it, the Skype program will launch on their computer or smartphone and your username will be added to their Skype account. If your code carries ‘Phone Number’ instead, once it is scanned by a smartphone, your number is automatically dialed.

Step 3: Editing The QR Code

Here, you can resize and move the QR code to better fit and blend into your design. You can also place the QR code at strategic locations on your logo or poster so it does not get in the way of the rest of your text or design. After you decided the size of your QR code, click next to preview it.

Step 4: Getting Your QR Code

If you’re satisfied with the preview, click next again to get your complete customized QR code image.

Visualead is available for free or for a price. For $14 per QR Code, you get the ad-free experience. In the free version while the code is being generated, you will be served some ads for a few seconds.

Conclusion

Visualead adds a nice touch to your QR Codes, which blends well with your design. Unlike the traditional white box, you can add color to it to match your background or your product/logo design. There is a slight snag near the end, right before your code is revealed to you but it’s a bargain for a free trial.

Related posts:

1. A Look Into: Product Marketing with Quick Response (QR) Code
2. How To Turn Android Device into Keyboard And Mouse
3. 40 Gorgeous QR Code Artworks That Rock
4. Create Customized (Colored) QR Codes [Quicktip]