Imagine you're packing for a trip to Paris, France and plan to visit The Louvre (www.louvre.fr) while you're in the city. Wouldn't it be awesome if you could get more out of the experience with your Windows Phone? That's exactly what ArtGuru – Louvre does. It's a companion app, which serves as a guide of sorts for the museum. Tour on pass the break to see what it's all about.

In an update last Thursday, HERE Drive added several new features including 'Find my car.' It does exactly what it sounds. It helps you locate your parked car using maps or LiveSight. We tested it over the weekend and put it in front of the camera. Check out our hands-on video with the new feature after the break.

Here in the United States, Square is a very popular solution for business owners wanting to accept credit and debit cards using their smartphones. They've got an app on both Android and iOS, but no love for Windows Phone. Our friends in Russia though just got a very similar app for the platform called LifePay. Let's check it out.

Black Friday is soon approaching (November 29th for those who aren't familiar with the frantic shopping period in the US) and Microsoft is looking to take full advantage of consumers who will be on the hunt for some deals. The company has unveiled numerous products on its online store, perfect if you'd like to bag some bargains without risking personal safety.

It took a while, but we're finally getting it. The official Windows Phone companion app for Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto V video game is available in the Store. We've gone over it before, but we'll give you a brief overview again and the download link after the break. Let's check out iFruit for Windows Phone 8.

Microsoft today released the Xbox One SmartGlass app for Windows Phone, but lo and behold the company has also pushed out the same solution on Windows 8.1. Should you have the next-gen console on pre-order and are eagerly awaiting its arrival by getting your home and technology ready, you'll definitely want to have this app downloaded.

Nextgen Reader is a popular RSS feed manager for Windows and Windows Phone. The app has now been updated for Windows 8.1, taking full advantage of new features available in the operating system upgrade. The release has been pushed to the store and you should be able to download/update to the latest version.

Microsoft's Bing is so much more than a web search engine. Earlier this summer at Build 2013, we learned how Bing was evolving into a platform of its own. Bing is also becoming a technology that's going to help power some cool technology that will integrate across all your devices. When you open your Xbox One this Friday you'll also see Bing doing some impressive features with your voice. Watch the video below with Xbox Live's Major Nelson to see it in action.

It's a large bouquet of gadgets this season from Microsoft. We have the likes of new Nokia Lumia devices, the second generation Surface, and the Xbox One. Just in time for your holiday shopping, Microsoft has opened their official Microsoft Store on eBay in the US.

Strata is a wonderfully drawn up, challenging Windows Phone 8 puzzle game.  Strata takes a very simplistic approach to puzzles where you have to weave colored ribbons to match a specific color pattern.

The game has hundreds of levels that vary in size and difficulty as you progress through the game.  Strata is an entertaining game that has an addictive quality to it, making it an attractive puzzle game for our Windows Phone 8 devices. 

Did you know the #1 downloaded app on Windows Phone is Facebook? It is and that's why all of you clamor for updates to the popular social network, especially the beta version, which sometimes gets features early.

Today, version 5.2.0.2 has gone live in the Store. Unfortunately, there's nothing too exciting to report in terms of new features that we can discern, but if the (old) changelog still holds, then this is the standard "bug fixes and supports new languages."

With only a few days left until the hotly anticipated Xbox One arrives in stores, Microsoft has already unleashed their SmartGlass app for the news system.

SmartGlass, introduced at E3 in 2012, has slowly ramped up as a 'second-screen' service, allowing those with smartphones and tablets to augment what is seen on screen. The SmartGlass service is expected to get more robust with the power of Xbox One, and with this app available today, we should be ready for this Friday.

Update: More info has come forward, reported below

The Nokia and Microsoft deal is going well so far, with shareholders now also on board. However, it appears that not everyone approves the acquisition as some of Nokia's China workforce have gone on strike.

We can expect ZTE to continue making Windows Phone devices again in 2014. He Shiyou, executive vice-president and head of the handset business of Shenzhen-based ZTE, tells the Financial Times the company would again begin producing phones using Microsoft's Windows platform after the acquisition of Nokia is completed.

Update 12 PM ET: It's official and the EGM is over. Shareholders have approved the deal between Microsoft and Nokia.

Nokia shareholders have today approved the Microsoft deal to purchase the company's phone division. The Financial Times reports that 99.7 percent of participating shareholders (around 5,000 attended the vote) were in favour of the deal going through. Microsoft will now integrate the Nokia division into Redmond, taking control of future Lumia and Asha products. 

One of the fantastic advancements with Windows Phone design development is wireless charging.  It eliminated the need to plug your Windows Phone up to a charging cord.  Plus you have the cool factor of simply laying your Windows Phone down on a charging pad to replenish the battery.

While Nokia offers a Qi-Enabled wireless charger (the DT-900), there are a few third party options out there.  RAVPower is one such alternative and the company offers their own Qi-Enabled wireless charger that may save you a few dollars at the checkout line without compromising quality or performance.