Its official, Microsoft has unveiled its latest operating system, nearly six years after the release of Windows 10.
Windows 11 comes with a massive redesign that includes an all-new boot screen and startup sound, and of course, a controversial centered start menu and new widgets feature that has made PC users mad over its resemblance to an Apple product.
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While the majority of the features released by the Redmond, Washington-based company on the newly launched OS is aimed at countering the likes of macOS and Chrome OS, one unexpected feature caught our attention.
Microsoft, in partnership with Amazon is making it possible for Windows 10 and Windows 11 users to access Android apps without the need of an Android emulator.
"Today we offer a broad selection of mobile apps in our Amazon Appstore, available across Fire TV, Fire Tablets, and Android devices that our customers use and enjoy everyday," said Palanidaran Chidambaram, Director of the Amazon Appstore and Cross-Screen Technology. "With this announcement, Amazon Appstore developers will now have the opportunity to make their Android apps available to hundreds of millions of Windows customers."
You might be wondering why Microsoft didn't team up with Google? Well, it might be for the obvious reasons since Google which is the maker of Chrome OS is also a competitor of Microsoft. Given that Chromebooks can download and use Android apps from the Google Play Store, the decision by the tech giant makes sense.
Android apps can be integrated into the Start menu, pinned onto the taskbar, and support Windows 11's upgraded Snap features for some side-by-side action.
In a statement to Tom's Hardware, Intel noted that Microsoft uses Intel's Bridge Technology to get mobile apps up and running on all x86 platforms, including AMD.
Though Microsoft used TikTok to demonstrate the feature, not every app on the Amazon Appstore will be made available for Windows 11. Apps like Uber, Ring, Kindle, etc. could be seen on the screenshots showing the Amazon Appstore.Amazon says that more apps will be coming to the store as it assures users that "the initial Amazon Appstore selection will be available to Windows customers later this year." Also, Amazon notes in the FAQ section that their "team will be in touch with developers later this year to share details on how to publish to Windows."
One thing to have in mind is that there won't be Play Store services available to users since Google wasn't involved. Also, we can't say for now if it will be possible to sideload Android apps on Windows 10 and 11. Let's watch and see.