Metroon, Windows 8 for your iPhone

Apple users usually shun Microsoft products for their apparent inadequacy, but here is something they might enjoy. Metroon is a Dreamboard theme that allows a jailbroken iOS device to have a Windows 8 Metro interface. Best of both worlds.

It’s kind of funny that an iOS user can have a form of Windows 8 Metro before it’s even released. A bit of a slap in the face, if you ask me. Ok, so it’s not a fully fledged Metro interface, but more of a Windows lite version.

It’s a striking difference from the usual iOS screen. It’s still an intuitive swipe to unlock the device, and from there you get a similar look to the Windows start screen, with live tiles and an app launcher. All the iOS apps can be pinned up as tiles, and there’s a charm bar that, when you swipe from the right, will bring you back to the normal iOS screen.

The functionality of the tiles is not the same as in Windows. They won’t display the ‘live’ activity of the tiles and are just stylized. Certain native apps like Messages or Calendar will show some information, though, like your next appointment or latest text message.

I couldn’t say it would be the easiest interface to live with, because when you alter one interface to suit another, things will inevitably work better with the original. I’m not entirely convinced that it is worth the US$1.50 necessary, but it is fun to mess around with, and if you are looking at getting a Windows 8 phone then it’s good practice.