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Daily Authority: šŸ“… Android timeline for Windows 11

Windows 11 tmeline to Android app support, plus more tech news you need to know today!
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Published onJanuary 27, 2022

Android apps on Windows 11
Microsoft

šŸ„¶ Good morning! This is one of those days where you question why you live in a place that hurts your face when you go outsideā€¦

Android apps on Windows 11 almost here

Windows 11 logo image
Microsoft
  • Finally one of the big features of Windows 11 is actually coming to Windows 11: native Android apps support, seemingly as part of the first big update to the new OS.

The rollout continues:

  • Youā€™ll recall last year, Microsoft announced that Windows 11 users would be able to natively access Android apps on PCs.
  • The oddity was that this would happen through a PC-based version of the Amazon Appstore, but so be it. This would be interesting.
  • Anyway, Windows 11 dropped in October last year, and thereā€™s been only limited beta-testing of the native Android app feature since then.
  • And many people, including me, were critical of that wait.
  • But now all is forgotten: Microsoft is saying it will start with a ā€œpublic previewā€ of the Android apps feature, which means itā€™s still in testing and you can expect limitations and bugs.
  • In theory, though, weā€™re closer than ever.
  • Panos Panay, Chief Product Officer, Windows + Devices, said: ā€œNext month weā€™re bringing new experiences to Windows that include a public preview of how you can use Android apps on Windows 11 through the Microsoft Store and our partnerships with Amazon and Intel, taskbar improvements with call mute and unmute, easier window sharing and bringing weather to the taskbar, plus the introduction of two new redesigned apps, Notepad and Media Player.ā€

Which apps?

  • There are reportedly 50 or so ā€œcurated appsā€ that beta testers can officially run via the Amazon Appstore at the moment.
  • That said, sideloading Android APKs is also possible and working well, from reports.
  • Itā€™s definitely a hassle, though.

Roundup

Throwback Thursday

Motorola Moto G31 showing front display
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority

On Jan 29 back in 2014, Google announced it would sell Motorola to Lenovo for $2.91 billion, less than three years after it bought the company for $12.5 billion. Sounds tough right? Well, maybe not.

  • Google sold off Motorolaā€™s cable modem and set-top box business for $2.35 billion.
  • Motorola at the time of acquisition had $3 billion in cash and $1 billion in tax credits, as well.
  • And the patent portfolio it acquired seems like it had riches: Even when Google sold to Lenovo, it did retain the ā€œAdvanced Technologies & Projects unitā€ as part of Android, and retained IP.
  • The official press release at the time said ā€œGoogle will maintain ownership of the vast majority of the Motorola Mobility patent portfolio, including current patent applications and invention disclosures.ā€
  • And even though Motorola lost hundreds of millions every quarter it was part of Google, the tax benefits were substantial: reported at $700M a year in deductions.
  • It still doesnā€™t strike me as one of Googleā€™s best moves, and it took Google years to get back to releasing ultra-competitive devices like the Pixel 6 series.

Have a good one! Tristan Rayner, Senior Editor.

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