Microsoft engineers claim that Windows 11 users will be able to sideload Android applications onto the operating system. This seems to answer one of our biggest questions when Microsoft announced that it would bring Android apps to Windows 11 via Amazon Appstore (via Android Police). This means that Windows 11 users won’t have to use the apps made available by Amazon, but it raises new questions about how Android apps will run on Windows.
It is unclear, for example, what the process will be to install or run a sideloaded application. Chrome OS technically can run sideloaded apps too. However, the process is not very simple. It involves enabling Linux as well as doing command line work. Microsoft has not responded to our request for information about how Android apps would run outside of the Amazon Appstore.
Sideloading apps onto Windows may not be as popular if Microsoft includes Google’s Play Store in place of Amazon’s Appstore. Although any app store will give Windows users access to many programs they didn’t have before, Amazon’s is notable for omitting some apps from its catalog. Windows users wouldn’t have the ability to download the Android version Snapchat or Apple Music from Amazon.
Sideloading apps can help solve the problem but it raises concerns. First, there is the issue of where the apps will be downloaded. While Snapchat and other free apps are unlikely to pose piracy issues, users could still download APKs from legal repositories to obtain paid apps.
The safety of sideloaded apps is also a concern. This feature has been built into Android by Google.
Although it is clear that Microsoft still has a lot to cover about how Android apps will run on Windows 11’s, the technical details that it has revealed are amazing, it is still helpful to get confirmation from Microsoft that the selection of Android applications won’t be limited to the Appstore.
Microsoft should share more information about Android apps’ functionality soon to get feedback from both Windows and Android users before the feature is made available to everyone. This will likely happen later in the year.
