Android Apps on Windows 11 • Hacker News Board

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#111

Post by chiefalchemist » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 12:44 AM UTC

babypuncher wrote: post #78

open-paren wrote: post #5

I have a suspicion that they went with the Amazon App Store because it removes the dependency on Google Play Services. Is that just me?

Google would never have wanted to put the Play Store on Windows because they actually compete with Windows. Access to the Play Store is a selling point of ChromeOS.

Google is still very much an ads company. Play? Chrome OS? Those are for Hoovering data. They are effectively loss leaders. Put another way, Google doesn't need to sell hardware, or software. It needs sources for data.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#112

Post by ohazi » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 12:47 AM UTC

gavin_gee wrote: post #8

(caveat i worked at MS for years but now don't) One of Microsoft's greatest strengths on show here. Embrace and extend. They made a mess of trying to build an app business with windows RT, Windows 8, windows 10. They can't get into the apple appstore ecosystem so they pivot to embracing the Android ecosystem to have an app catalog on windows. (Ironically what google did with Android was the play that Microsoft should…

> One of Microsoft's greatest strengths on show here. Embrace and extend.

Why would Android developers go along with anything Microsoft tries to "extend" Android with when Google will just go "lol, no"?

This seems more like a desperate grasp than "embrace/extend/extinguish."

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#113

Post by nmridul » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:13 AM UTC

In the long term, will my bank force me to install app and stop supporting browser ? Right now desktop (and somtimes legal requirements) is one major reason for them supporting the browser.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#114

Post by easton » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:16 AM UTC

melony wrote: post #36

drcode wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is a walled garden since its inception. There is no package manager for building an open package ecosystem, as exists on other OSes.

Where do you think PowerShell's OneGet comes from? It comes from embracing and extending AppGet. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23331287

The embracing and extending here was "that's a nice idea, we'll re-write that from scratch and use the Microsoft Store as a GUI for it", which doesn't seem like the same thing to me at all.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#115

Post by LASR » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:20 AM UTC

mattnewton wrote: post #91

criddell wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you're saying it's only a matter of time before Windows, which is 35 years old, might become a walled garden?

I think they kinda tried with the windows store + arm windows surfaces. The market didn't like it.

To be fair, those Windows RT tablets were complete garbage.

I was working at Microsoft when they came out and they handed them out for free to every employee.

Due to the lack of any meaningful apps (not even Chrome), the thing was DOA. IE11 was the only option for browsing.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#116

Post by geogra4 » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:22 AM UTC

madeofpalk wrote: post #55

DeathArrow wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

MS can do their own Android. And it wouldn't even be a terribly stupid ideea. They already sell laptops, so why not phones?

Microsoft already sells an Android "phone" https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/surface/devices/surface-duo

Surprised with this they didn't do like Amazon and make a ms version of android

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#117

Post by pedro2 » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:24 AM UTC

KoftaBob wrote: post #93

unicornporn wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Was just about to ask the same question. I can't come up with a single Android app I'd like to run on desktop. Is it just an app development thing?

All the streaming services that allow you to download/save shows/movies for offline viewing, only offer that feature on their apps.

Netflix refuses to run on Bluestacks, so double-check your favourite app first.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#118

Post by alexdumitru » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 1:37 AM UTC

nikanj wrote: post #70

"Mobile games: Play some of the most popular mobile games like Lords Mobile, June’s Journey, Coin Master, and more." I'm reasonably certain those are not the most popular mobile games right now.

They are some of the worst games for sure. Pay to win and the "whales" spend tens of thousands to make sure they do.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#119

Post by kevingadd » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 2:04 AM UTC

nikanj wrote: post #70

"Mobile games: Play some of the most popular mobile games like Lords Mobile, June’s Journey, Coin Master, and more." I'm reasonably certain those are not the most popular mobile games right now.

Coin Master appears to be the #4 highest grossing game on the Play Store and Lords' whatever is #8, so.

Re: Android Apps on Windows 11

#120

Post by Psychotherapist » Thu, Oct 21, 2021, 2:07 AM UTC

bilal4hmed wrote: post #9

vorpalhex wrote: post #7

Has anyone tried sideloading android apps yet? I assume you'd need MicroG for anything Google dependent.

I saw a tweet go by that ADB is packaged in, so it should be possible to sideload

I just tried it with sideloading an instagram apk (since I don't live in the USA and don't have an USA Amazon Account for the Store) and it works perfectly fine. Just turn on developer mode and use adb to connect & sideload