Giveaway of the Day Forums

1. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   neowin[.]net/news/microsoft-is-killing-android-apps-support-on-windows-11/

   As of today you can no longer install the version of Amazon's app store included with Windows Subsystem for Android. If you've already installed Amazon's App Store, you can add / install new apps from that store until March 6, 2024, so today's the last day. Apps that have been installed before the 6th will continue to work, and may be updated, though all support will end March 5, 2025. Nothing is said about what happens when support ends, whether those apps will continue to work or not.

   I haven't been able to find anything saying [or guessing] why the abrupt cut off. It's certainly a bit different from what they've done in the past when killing off a Windows feature.

   learn.microsoft[.]com/en-us/windows/whats-new/deprecated-features

   Some have written that in their opinion it's because the Amazon App Store in Win11 got so little interest, but I'd argue that Wordpad, along with plenty of other deprecated features were seldom used and mostly forgotten, yet they got a better send off with warnings ahead of time. My guesses would be that either Amazon pulled the plug -- the notice and FAQ are on amazon[.]com -- or Microsoft had a bill coming due and just suddenly decided they were not paying it.

   Posted 8 months ago #
2. 

   Dragonlair
   Member

   The Amazon appstore for Win 11 had ridiculously high requirements. It was needed to run the Audible app on any windows but was only available for a small fraction of win 11 installations. It took me weeks to explain to Audible that I could not use it!

   Because of those restrictions, I would bet that there were very very few installs of the appstore.

   Posted 8 months ago #
3. 

   mikiem2
   Moderator

   You're probably right. I added it to my Insider Beta copy of Win11, along with a small app to help with side loading, and I'd try it from time to time, but none of the Android apps I was interested in using in Windows would ever work. Some apps were just utilities, like the one to control the humidifier, while others were things like the streaming app for MAX. I had somewhat high hopes for the Google software to run Android stuff in Windows, but it does not like AMD hardware, so that went nowhere. I'll probably [eventually] break down and get a cheap phone, using it on WiFi so I don't have to get out & fire up the tablet.

   Posted 8 months ago #
4. 

   blakeblossom
   Member

   You're right, this feels different from past feature removals. Microsoft usually offers a more gradual process with extended support windows and clear communication. The argument about low Amazon App Store usage holds some weight. However, like you mentioned, other rarely used features haven't been discontinued so abruptly.

   Posted 6 months ago #

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