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Microsoft has finally released their new and improved mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7, to the general public with over a dozen handsets, and they seem to be pretty keen on making it a huge success. Not only was the OS fully rewritten, from scratch, but it also features a lot of unique features and a beautiful, innovative interface, the likes of which you’ve never seen before (well, unless you own the new Zune).

It takes a while to get used to it after you’ve used an Android, Blackberry, iPhone or any other smartphone OS out there, but once you know its ins and outs, it’s simply a pleasure to use. Of course, there are some bugs, but they’re getting fixed quite fast, and overall Windows Phone 7 is as stable as its desktop companion, Windows 7.

The app marketplace is also growing at a phenomenal rate, with everyone porting their apps to the new platform, and unlike the first Windows Mobile marketplace, this one is actually useful and features a lot of great apps in all the categories. If it continues at this rate, it may very well become larger than Android was at the same time. The good news is that if you just want to see what a WP7 smartphone is capable of, you don’t need to pay – there are a lot of great free apps on the marketplace that will do exactly what you want. Here are just some of them:

1. Flixster

Movies by Flixster is the top application to get movie trailers, find show times and check movie reviews for Windows Phone 7. With it, you have access to a database of tens of thousands of movies, including the newest ones that are showing in theaters, and can watch their trailers, get recommendations for similar movies, see what other people think, and even buy tickets to a theater near you!

2. Shazam

Shazam is another app from the entertainment category, and is currently one of the top apps for iPhone and Android. It has become immediately available for Windows Phone 7, which is great, as now you can identify music that is currently being played on the TV, radio or online using your phone’s microphone, get recommendations for good music based on what you like, share your playlists with other users and your friends and do so much more.

3. Twitter

The official app for Twitter comes preinstalled on many WP7 smartphones, and it should be, because it’s simply great. It allows you to do everything you might need on Twitter, including read and post tweets, reply to other people and upload videos and pictures whenever you want and wherever you are.

4. Foursquare

Foursquare is one of the most popular apps on all platforms, including the new Windows Phone 7. It is basically a virtual reality game in which people play in locations based on the real world. For example, a section of a town can be a whole city in the game, and there is a mayor that is chosen by vote or by accomplishments. But that’s not all you can do there. Because you’ve got so many people gathered together, you can ask for directions, see interesting things and stuff to do in a new town (the real one), find the best places to eat, and do many other useful things. Foursquare is a good example of how location-aware apps can help us.

5. Flashlight 7

Flashlight 7 is the simplest app on this list, but it’s certainly not the least useful. It simply turns your screen white and sets the brightness to maximum, so you can use your smartphone as a flashlight. If you have a phone equipped with a LED flash, you can use it as a flashlight as well (that actually works much better).

6. Spin Crisis

The Labyrinth game on both iPhone and Android operating systems has always been one of the most popular ones. Spin Crisis is yet another take on the concept, and it comes with beautiful graphics and even cooler labyrinths. You control a ball with the accelerometer and guide it around obstacles to reach a destination – pretty standard, but the improved graphics make it much better.

Unlike Android, there are a lot less free apps on the Windows Phone 7 marketplace. However, there are still enough of them to satisfy anyone’s needs (the iTunes marketplace features about the same free to paid apps ratio, so it’s really no big deal). Be sure to check out the above apps – they’re pretty useful, especially considering they’re completely free.

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