Google Play Store

Epic Games is making rounds in headlines lately and not just because of games it publishes. It ended 2018 with some great news for gamers but bad news for Apple and Google. Actually, it’s bad news just for Google really. While it did not give out specifics, it reiterated what the game developer had already alluded to before. Its Epic Game Store isn’t going to stop at challenging the status quo in the PC gaming market. It’ll be taking its developer-centric cause to mobile but while its intentions are noble, it might do more harm than good in the long run.

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With the end of 2018 quickly approaching, we're bound to see a ton of "Best of" lists over the next few weeks. One of the first is coming from the Google Play Store today, which is promoting what it considers to be the best apps of the year. Aside from the best app of the 2018, categories this year range from "Most Entertaining" to "Hidden Gems," with some fan-voted apps featured as well.

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Another Thanksgiving, another maddening run to get the best Black Friday sales deals. These days, though, you rarely need to literally run and rampage through stores thanks to online shopping. In fact, some of the deals aren’t even physical things you need to race for to grab before anyone else. So while you recover from the weekend’s festivities and frenzy, why not grab an app or game that’s going to last you more than just one season.

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Another day, another Android malware sighted on Google Play Store. Countless pieces and analyses have been written up regarding Google’s mostly hands-off approach to screening apps and it’s a bitter pill to swallow for Android fans and believers. But while there’s no denying that too many such Potentially Harmful Apps or PHAs have slipped through the cracks, there is also one thing that seems to escape notice: the hundreds of thousands of users that should have all been compromised by these malware-laden Android apps.

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Who would have thought making an Android app launcher would be this much trouble. Amir Zaidi probably didn’t think so when he tried to make users’ lives easier and safer by putting the popular Rootless Pixel Launcher up on Google Play Store. But trouble he did encounter and a bit of drama did ensue. The good news: Rootless Pixel Launcher is now back on Google Play Store. The bad news? You will need to do a bit more to make it work perfectly.

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Well, that was quick. Barely a week after the developer and fans of the Rootless Pixel Launcher celebrated its availability on Google Play Store, Google takes it down. But before you go thinking foul play, developer Amir Zaidi did issue a mea culpa over the incident. It all boils down to a policy on Google Play Store that disallows apps that download other apps that isn't also available on Google Play Store.

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In a battle of giants, it’s the little guys that get stomped on. There seems to be a revolution brewing in the mobile market, with key players no longer satisfied with the status quo that once made them rich. They’re seemingly flipping the finger at “The Man” and rallying in support of the common folk.

It isn’t a David vs. Goliath battle, though. More like Goliath 1 vs Goliath 2. And while many might not be so fond of the current in-app purchase trends and exploitation, users are likely to be on the losing end, no matter which side wins.

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Smartphones are built for the Internet. Almost every functionality and every app seem to be designed with the presumption of an Internet connection always available. Naturally, installing and updating apps also require that. Internet access, however, isn’t available everywhere all the time. And in some cases, it can even be expensive. Google Play used to be indiscriminate about Internet connections. Either you had one or you didn’t, end of story. Fortunately, now it will be more forgiving, allowing users to choose not to download or update apps unless they’re on Wi-Fi.

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Google is making a bit of noise about something that users may have presumed has actually been the case even when Wear OS by Google was known by a different name: Android Wear. The Android maker is now giving smartwatch app developers a heads up to tell them that starting next month, all new Wear OS apps are required to undergo a review process before being listed on the Google Play Store. This is to ensure the quality of apps that should really be a primary concern in the first place.

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It started innocently enough. Android users are no stranger to iOS getting first dibs on apps and games, as long as they eventually get their share. At first, it seemed that was what Epic Games was doing for Fortnite Mobile on Android. Instead, it turned into a rather complicated situation involving revenue sharing and security. But more than just potential security problems, Epic’s decision to shun Google could, if unchecked, undo many of the things the Android community have been working towards for the past few years.

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By now, anyone who has even the slightest interest in Fortnite knows that it's finally coming to Android. The latest news has been about how Epic Games is taking the unique stance of keeping it off the Google Play Store and instead requiring users to download the game's APK directly off their website. But what's really interesting is that now even Google is acknowledging that it doesn't have the game by making an announcement — inside the Play Store itself.

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iPhones and iPads get the goods app first (or even only). It’s a sad fact of mobile life that Android users have accepted. Heck, even YouTube’s own dark mode only started rolling out to Android today. That’s also true for fans of the battle royale game Fortnite who have been waiting for the mobile version to land on Android. That day might be drawing near but if this latest tidbit is true, the game might cause some confusion and could be a security risk waiting to happen.

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