So why kill it off? Security vector? No one using it? No way to monetize it? Support nightmare? Natella got bored with it? All of the above?
I’m leaning more on nobody using it. Didn’t help that they partnered with Amazon for it.
And by default, it’s only available on 11. What percentage if the user base has switched.
You can run WSA on Win10, there’s a github for it.
They might as well; it’s not great and it’s not easy to use.
You have to log into your phone every single time. The only reason I would want to use Android apps on a laptop is bc the phone is upstairs and I’m downstairs on the laptop.
The only workaround for this is to completely wonk around with the coding on the backend. Also, outside of a handful of games, the bulk of apps are trash and have better Windows non-store alternatives.
Not sure if they were trying to harmonize Android with Windows in the way that Apple products are made, but the whole thing has been executed as a huge mess.
What do you mean “log into your phone every single time”? (Edit: I didn’t mean that to sound like it does, just I don’t know what logging into your phone has to do with WSA. Is there a connection somehow?)
I use WSA, and it works like any subsystem - I think this is a key point - it’s not an Android VM, it’s a subsystem, like the Linux one, and Posix before that. It means apps on those platforms appear to run natively.
I’ve installed a launcher to WSA, and it makes for a more-Android like experience (makes managing some things a little easier).
The Android apps I use on WSA behave just like on the phone - it’s useful for apps that don’t have a sync/web service, or apps where the Windows app or website sucks/doesn’t exist.
Waydroid looking good
That’s a fair point. Maybe WSL2+Wayland+Waydroid does the trick and whatever they do is just duplication of effort.
thats just linux with many extra steps
So they are not pulling the feature from Windows right? We will still be able to side load?
If you currently use Android apps from the Amazon Appstore, then you’ll continue to have access to these past the support cutoff date, but you won’t be able to download any new ones once Microsoft makes its Android subsystem end of life next year. On March 6th (tomorrow), Windows 11 users will no longer be able to search for Amazon Appstore or associated Android apps from the Microsoft Store.
That doesn’t answer the question. Sure we will be able to use them past the cutoff date but do they have plans to remove the subsystem in the future through an update?
My prediction is “probably yes”, given the other nonsense they’ve done.
Though I added it to Win10 via a package from github. Win10 did require to be a certain patch level. I would assume the underlying architecture that’s required won’t go away (Android is an API on Linux after all, and we have WSL too), so we should still be able to use something like this.
Boo!
That was the only feature 11 had that almost made me switch. Guess I’ll never use it now.
You can run it on Win10. Works fine. There’s a github for it. Let me go find it.
Should just end Windows 11 instead.
