Yesterday it appeared that WinZip for Windows 8 app was now available for free. Which would have represented a fairly swift change of direction, as it’s not even three months since the app first appeared in the Windows Store with a price tag of $7.99.

But apparently this is not the case. The Windows 8 store may label it as free, and you won’t be told otherwise on installation, but it seems the app is only free for a 15 day trial, after which point you’ll need to subscribe for the same $7.99 a year.

And that’s plainly not something to get too excited about.

This touch-friendly app runs on Windows 8 and Windows RT

Could the app still be worth considering? The interface looks good and works well, allowing you to browse files and folders with a clean and touch-friendly tile-based interface.

It runs on Windows RT, as well as Windows 8.

And WinZip for Windows 8 also provides access to the ZipSend service for sending archives to others, while allowing you to securely share your files via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive and more.

But on the other hand, the app only handles ZIP and ZIPX files, which is fine when you only need to create and manage your own archives, but could be an issue if you regularly download or are sent other formats.

And that annual $7.99 does seem a little much, especially when 7-Zip and other competitors deliver so much power for precisely nothing at all.

If you’re running Windows RT, then, or just like Windows 8’s “modern UI” so much that you never want to leave, then WinZip for Windows 8 may still appeal. But everyone else should probably head off to the desktop, where there are far more archiving programs to choose from.