Skype has unveiled a new app for Windows 8 which is designed to take advantage of the operating system’s new touch-friendly “Modern” user interface. It looks like what you’d get if you combines Skype’s older Windows software with the company’s apps for mobile devices… because that’s pretty much what it is.
Skype for Windows 8 features a new multi-pane, full-screen view. From the home screen you can view recent interactions with your contacts or launch text, voice, or video chats with your contacts by tapping on a favorite or entering the People portino of the app.
There’s a Live Tile that appears on your Start Screen which lets you launch the app or view missed calls or messages. You’ll also see notifications of incoming calls or messages even if you’re using another app in the foreground.
Like other Modern UI apps, you can snap Skype to the side of your screen to keep a chat going while you’re using another app.
Microsoft acquired Skype a while back, so it would have been kind of surprising if the company didn’t have a Skype app ready to go by Windows 8 launch day on October 26th. But it was starting to look like the developers were cutting things close.