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Tag: playstore

  • New feature reveals whether your Android phone spots the latest version of the Google Play Store

    New feature reveals whether your Android phone spots the latest version of the Google Play Store

    It could just be that this writer is in the minority, but yours truly always preferred calling the Android app storefront the Android Market instead of the Google Play Store. The change was made in March 2012 as Google sought to unify the Android Market and Google in one brand. Just two years before the name switch, the Android Market contained just 30,000 apps, up from 10,000 in September 2010 and 16,000 in December 2010.

    Perhaps you remember the original Android Market icon which was a white shopping bag with the green Android bug on the front. When Google changed the name to the Play Store it created a new icon that resembles the triangular play icon found on many apps including Google’s own YouTube and YouTube Music.

    19 months later, the Android Market was home to half a million apps and Android was on its way to becoming the most popular mobile operating system on the planet. At last count, there are over 2.5 million apps in the Google Play Store.

    Coming to the Google Play Store via a server-side update is a new quick and easy way to make sure that your Android phone is running the latest version of the Play Store. Simply open the app and tap on the profile picture on the right side of the search bar at the top of the screen. From there, tap on Settings > About and when you scroll down toward the bottom of the display, you’ll see the words “Update Play Store” in green text.

    Tap on that link and if your version of the Play Store is the most recent available, you’ll get a message that says “Google Play Store is up to date.” If you need to update the app, you will be given that opportunity. While not all Android or even Pixel users have received this update, we see it (as you can tell from the image that we’ve included with this article) on our ancient Pixel 2 XL running Android 11.

    Before adding this feature, tapping on the version number from the About screen would check to see if your Android phone was sitting on an update for the Play Store. The problem is that unless you knew about this, there would be no reason for you or anyone to tap on the version number on the About screen. We should point out that the newly added link has been placed right underneath the Play Store version number.

    By July 2013, the Play Store hit one million apps overtaking the 900,000 listed in the App Store for the first time. As of last month, approximately 71% of smartphones used worldwide run Android with 29% powered by iOS. Despite this huge advantage, the revenue of the Play Store always falls well short of the amount spent on iOS.

    One theory is that in developing economies like India, the world’s second-largest smartphone market, lower-priced Android models are in demand. And in regions like India, many Android phone buyers are not financially equipped to spend much money on apps. Or to look at it another way, those able to afford to buy a new iPhone are most likely able to spend money on the purchase of iOS apps from the App Store.

    Because this is a server-side update, Android users don’t have to worry about manually updating the Google Play App. Just keep an eye out for the new link and eventually, you should find it in the Play Store app on your Android phone. In case you were wondering, the version of the Play Store on our Pixel 2 XL, which does include the new feature, is 28.2.10-21.

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  • Google tests cool new feature for the Play Store

    Google tests cool new feature for the Play Store

    In its never-ending battle to improve the Google Play Store, Google is testing a method to allow users to make comparisons between two or more apps. This comes after Hamburgers were removed from the Play Store menu earlier this month. No, Google wasn’t competing with Mickey D’s. The Hamburger menu was an icon consisting of three straight horizontal lines that looked like a Hamburger from the side (top bun, meat, and bottom bun) and when tapped, a menu list appeared.

    The Compare apps section appears near the bottom of a Play Store listing and at the moment it seems to be limited to a few side-by-side comparisons of media players under the heading of Compare apps. The apps are compared based on things like offline playback, visual quality, ease of use, controls, and whether or not a particular app will cast content. A major assumption is that Google is gathering the information it uses for comparisons directly from feedback from users who are prone to leave reviews.

    Remember that this is just a test right now and it has appeared in the Play Store when some users are running version 22.4.28 of the app. Being able to compare key elements of two or more similar apps listed in the Google Play Store is sure to improve the experience of using Google’s Android app storefront.

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  • Google removes apps from the Play Store for Ad fraud

    Google removes apps from the Play Store for Ad fraud

    A successful Android app developer with over half a billion installs to its credit is having its apps removed by Google from the Play Store. DO Global, based in China, has had 46 apps erased from Google’s Android app storefront after an investigation conducted by BuzzFeed found serious issues with the apps. Before Google started taking action against the developer, DO Global had approximately 100 apps in the Google Play Store making this one of the biggest actions ever taken against an app developer by Google. The remaining apps will be removed shortly. DO Global had been a wholly owned subsidiary of well know Chinese internet firm Baidu. But last year, the unit was spun off and Baidu kept a 34% stake.

    The initial report from BuzzFeed said that at least six of the apps from DO Global would click on ads even if the app was not being used. Online security firm Checkpoint, in partnership with BuzzFeed, found the apps loaded with malware that it dubbed PreAMo.That’s because the apps fraudulently clicked on banner ads served up by mobile ad networks Presage, Admob, and Mopub. Checkpoint states that the malware was installed from these six apps a total of 90 million times.

    Some of the apps involved were credited to developers like “Pic Tools Group” and “Photo Artist Studio,” and their true ownership was hidden by DO Global. That’s another violation of Play Store rules. The developer contact information was also different on several of the apps, obfuscating their true owners. The actual titles include apps like RAM Master-Memory Optimizer; Photo Editor-Makeup Camera & Photo Effects and Crashy Cops. DO Global claims that its apps have 250 million monthly active users, and said that its mobile ad platform reaches 800 million people.

    “We fully understand the seriousness of the allegations. Therefore, after reading the reports about our apps, we immediately conducted an internal investigation on this matter. We regret to find irregularities in some of our products’ use of AdMob advertisements. Given this, we fully understand and accept Google’s decision. Moreover, we have actively cooperated with them by doing a thorough examination of every app involved…moving forward, we will strictly follow relevant regulations and continue conducting a comprehensive review of our products. Lastly, during this process, we have caused misunderstandings and great concern due to our being unable to communicate in a timely manner and provide complete information. We offer our sincere apologies.”-DO Global

    In a statement, Google said that it will always investigate malicious behavior by apps. When it finds violations, it will prevent a developer from monetizing an app through AdMob and/or remove an app from the Play Store.

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  • Google starts rolling out Android updates via Play Store

    Google starts rolling out Android updates via Play Store

    What started as a rumor last week has now become a certainty, as Google is now rolling out Android Q betaupdates through Play Store. The main benefit is that you’ll now find Android updates much easier, or let’s say that they will find you faster and easier than before.

    A couple of Pixel users have taken to Reddit to confirm their Android Q beta updates have arrived via Google Play Store. Those with Pixel phones that run the previous Android Q beta build should start receiving notifications like the ones you usually get for an app update. Once the update is downloaded and installed, your phone will restart automatically.

    Aside from the fact that the whole process of find and downloading an update is quicker and easier, it’s also faster than previous updates. We doubt the new update method will become available to those using phones other than Pixels anytime soon, but we can safely assume that Google will reveal in-depth details about how it’s done in early May at Google I/O.

    If Google pushes for the standardization of the Android OS updates via Play Store, it could mean a more user-friendly method of updating your phone, but it certainly doesn’t guarantee that these important updates will be released faster and at the same time for everyone.

  • HTC is doing something with its Play Store apps

    HTC is doing something with its Play Store apps

    While we have yet to see HTC release a new smartphone for 2019, data from AppBrain reveals that 14 apps from the manufacturer have been unpublished from the Google Play Store. This month alone, HTC has removed the Sense Home Launcher and HTC People. The former was a launcher that showed apps that users might want to open depending on their current location. There were three different options available: home, work, or out. The latter was an app that helped users manage their contacts, dialer and call logs.

    In February, apps like HTC Calendar, HTC Mail and HTC Dot View were unpublished. Calendar and Mail are pretty self-explanatory, and the Dot View app worked with the case of the same name. Tap on the front of the case, and a pixelated view (or a dot view) of the time and temperature would appear as well as information about incoming calls.

    Some of the unpublished apps had gone a long time without being updated and probably were no longer supported by HTC. But others, like HTC Calendar, HTC People and HTC Mail were pre-installed on HTC handsets. This doesn’t necessarily mean that HTC has given up on the smartphone industry. In fact, that is a rumor that the company denied late last year. HTC is expected to deliver its first 5G phone in the second half of this year.

    HTC’s decision to unpublish some of its apps would make sense if it decided to make its upcoming handsets run Android One. This is a near stock version of Android that keeps out bloatware from manufacturers.

    The last phone HTC released was its Exodus 1 Blockchain phone designed for cryptocurrency investors. Launched in December, the device comes with a secure wallet and a 6-inch QHD+ display. Powered by the Snapdragon 845 Mobile Platform, the Exodus 1 features 6GB of memory and 128GB of storage. There is a dual-camera setup on back (12MP + 16MP), dual 8MP selfie snappers, and a 3500mAh battery. The price of the Exodus 1 is $699.

  • Google yanks controversial app from the Play Store

    Google yanks controversial app from the Play Store

    Axios revealed last week that Google has removed the Living Hope Ministries app from the Google Play Store. Those who installed the app could listen to recordings of sermons and view texts of devotionals for men, women, parents and their children. However, despite the Ministry’s denial, the app was also known for offering gay conversion therapy. This is a controversial method that some (including Vice President Mike Pence) believe will convert gay and bisexual men and women to a heterosexual orientation. The conversion is done by a brainwashing-like technique that uses psychology and religious belief to pound messages into subjects over and over again. Some say that this technique is harmful, ineffective, and could lead to depression, drug use and suicide.

    Meanwhile, Google’s action came after 142,212 people signed a petition on Change.org that called for the app’s removal. Several LGBTQ organizations also demanded that the app is removed. But Google did not respond immediately; it took months of protesting before the company finally followed the lead of other tech firms that had already removed the app from their storefronts such as Apple, Microsoft and Amazon.

    “It took months of activism by Truth Wins Out and Change.org, and today Human Rights Campaign, to get Google to pull a conversion therapy app. I called Google out in the press about this in January. They took no action. Credit is due for finally acting — but Google now needs a serious internal audit examining why it delayed so long.”-Sen. Brad Hoylman.

    “After consulting with outside advocacy groups, reviewing our policies, and making sure we had a thorough understanding of the app and its relation to conversion therapy, we’ve decided to remove it from the Play Store, consistent with other app stores.”-Google

    Before the Human Rights Campaign fought for the removal of the app, it had given Google a perfect 100% score for its annual Corporate Equality Index. The score was based on Google’s offering of health benefits for same-sex couples, and for providing health care to Transgender employees. However, the organization pulled its support for Google because it would not originally remove the Living Hope Ministries app.

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