Windows 10 will soon be able to run your favourite Android apps
Microsoft is hard at work on a new system that’ll allow its desktop operating system to run Android apps. Windows 10 is already able to run some Android apps using the Your Phone app, which syncs with the software of the same name on your Android handset to bring text messages, notifications and incoming calls to your desktop PC or laptop, as well as limited access to your apps.
Launching apps from within Your Phone works by streaming the content from the apps from the handset in your pocket to Windows 10. That’s a pretty nifty workaround and works well enough to allow Windows 10 users to quickly jump into WhatsApp from their desktop to reply to a message, or scroll through their Instagram feed without the hassle of taking out their phone.
However, Microsoft is working on something more substantial. With a hefty 70 percent marketshare, Android is incredibly popular. And crucially – unlike its rival iOS, which powers Apple’s iPhone series – it’s an open ecosystem. Provided that Microsoft can sort the underlying subsystem to run Android apps, there’s nothing stopping Windows 10 users installing them to their desktop. That’s something that’s not possible with iOS apps, unless the hardware is designed and sold by Apple.
Reports that Microsoft is looking to double-down on its support for Android apps comes courtesy of Zac Bowden of Windows Central, who has a phenomenal track record when it comes to whispers of as-yet-unannounced Windows 10 features. According to Bowden, the new system designed by Microsoft would enable Android apps to be stocked in the Microsoft Store and installed like native Windows 10 apps. Under the bonnet, these apps will be running inside a virtualised environment – mimicking and Android smartphone.
But from the outside, to most Windows 10 users, it’ll simply look as if the Android app has installed like a native Windows app and is accessible from within the Start Menu. And unlike the Your Phone app… it won’t matter whether your smartphone is nearby or connected to the internet. The Android apps will still load exactly as planned.
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