Developers Will Be Able To Sideload Android Apps On Chrome OS 80
Sideloading Android Apps on your Chromebook has been a long sort-after feature for Chrome OS diehards. While Google has held out bringing the feature to Chrome OS-powered devices, recent indicators are pointing to something similar in the very near future.
Android is tipped to play a pivotal role in the overall usability of Chromebooks. By adding more places to get apps from, Google is hoping its titular platform isn’t just a novelty endeavor.
When Android came to Chrome OS, there was only one official method of getting the apps to run on your device, and that is through the Play Store. Any other means required following a tedious process and turning on Develope Mode.
Presumably succumbing to user demands, Google is finally letting Chromebook users albeit only developers, to take the Play Store out of the equation and run Android apps on the Chromebooks.
The feature is set to arrive with Chrome OS 80 and will allow developers to try out the new apps within the comfort of the Android container in their Chromebooks.
The feature is a far cry from the exact sideloading feature that a lot us asked for as developers aren’t just sideloading the apps akin to how APK files are installed on Android smartphones, this method requires Android Studio but developers won’t need to turn on Developer mode to try it out.
The requirements will surely make it extremely difficult for the end-user to make use of this feature but it is a step in the right direction and we are hoping the search giant would eventually make the process simpler and open to everyone.
