We've
seen some workarounds before but they require firing up the HEX editor
to modify system files, and you are still limited to 256-color
background images in a handful of specific sizes. That’s more work than
most people are probably willing to bother with and as you can imagine
the results are not quite optimal.
Enter Decor8. Stardock’s
latest Windows 8 customization app removes this limitation by giving
users the ability to pick any picture they want, regardless of size or
color range, as the Start screen background.
The program is pretty straightforward to use. Upon launching
Decor8,
you’ll be presented with a set of background images to choose from,
including the start screen and desktop background images that Windows 8
ships with and also a set of wallpapers that Stardock ships with the
app. You get the usual fill, fit, tile and center options available in
the classic desktop, and the program will automatically create a color
scheme to match each of your background images -- or you can manually
customize the color scheme if you’re so inclined.
You can add
folders to the program to use your own photos and images as background.
There’s also the option to select multiple background images by
holding down the Ctrl key, and have them rotate on a set time interval,
as well as the option to fade background images against the start
screen color for a subtle effect.
Sadly,
Decor8 is not free. Stardock offers a free 30-day trial but otherwise
asks a modest $4.99 for the app. It’s a little unnerving to pay for
such basic functionality but if you wish to customize the Windows 8
Start screen beyond what Microsoft offers this is the easiest-to-use
tool we’ve found. It does one thing and it does it well.
