Anybody try the Windows Subsystem for Android yet?

When I went to the Microsoft Store to get a Kindle app for my Windows 11
laptop, all it offered my search was a Kindle for ANDROID app. Weird.
But I thought why not. When I hit install it also installed the Android
subsystem.

So far I've only been able to get other Windows/Android apps from the
Amazon Appstore app (Windows/Android version) which has a much poorer
app selection than its native Android Appstore version. But I haven't
messed with it all that much yet. Anyone else?

BTW I decided I still liked the Windows Kindle version better so I found
and downloaded it from the Amazon Store (by Windows browser). So now I
have 2 Kindle app OS versions on my laptop. I found that the Android app
takes 13 seconds to load vs the Windows app at 3 seconds. That's because
the subsystem has to load first for the Android app. No biggie, since I
could just leave the Android app open all the time to avoid the delay.

Also the Android subsystem comes with its own settings page. One of the
things you can join is an early preview program to get future subsystem
releases. Hopefully things will eventually improve enough that I can do
away with my (Android app running) Chromebooks... 8-O

AJL <noemail@none.com> wrote:

> Anybody try the Windows Subsystem for Android yet?
>
> When I went to the Microsoft Store to get a Kindle app for my Windows 11
> laptop, all it offered my search was a Kindle for ANDROID app. Weird.
> But I thought why not. When I hit install it also installed the Android
> subsystem.
>
> So far I've only been able to get other Windows/Android apps from the
> Amazon Appstore app (Windows/Android version) which has a much poorer
> app selection than its native Android Appstore version. But I haven't
> messed with it all that much yet. Anyone else?
>
> BTW I decided I still liked the Windows Kindle version better so I found
> and downloaded it from the Amazon Store (by Windows browser). So now I
> have 2 Kindle app OS versions on my laptop. I found that the Android app
> takes 13 seconds to load vs the Windows app at 3 seconds. That's because
> the subsystem has to load first for the Android app. No biggie, since I
> could just leave the Android app open all the time to avoid the delay.
>
> Also the Android subsystem comes with its own settings page. One of the
> things you can join is an early preview program to get future subsystem
> releases. Hopefully things will eventually improve enough that I can do
> away with my (Android app running) Chromebooks... 8-O

Went to https://apps.microsoft.com/store/apps, and searched on "kindle"
which found:

https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/kindle-for-android/XP8LGC9MGZ8HD2

Is that the one? You didn't give a URL to the app page. On that app
page, it says:

Requires Windows Subsystem for Android

Microsoft never got around to supporting Android apps on Windows 10.
Then they promised it for Windows 11, but it didn't appear when Windows
11 first came out. So, to use the Kindle for Android app, you must also
be on Windows 11. If you scroll to the end of the app page to see the
System Requirements section, yep, Windows 11 is required, and build
21990.0 or higher. From:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/android/wsa/release-notes

looks like MS came out with this about March 2022, but this article
makes it appear WSA wasn't available until Oct 2022:

https://www.theregister.com/2022/10/21/windows_subsystem_for_android_released/

Their articles say you must install the Amazon appstore app:

https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/amazon-appstore/9NJHK44TTKSX

So, you can only install Android apps onto Windows 11 that you can get
from Amazon; see:

https://developer.amazon.com/apps-and-games/appstore-on-windows-11

That means you must have an Amazon account. From:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/android/wsa/

Install the Amazon Appstore
The Microsoft Store will automatically install Windows Subsystem for
Android silently in the background when either of the two following user
actions are taken:
- Install the Amazon Appstore from the Microsoft Store. Selecting Get
will begin the installation of the app.
- Install an Android app from the Microsoft Store for the first time,
which will also install the Amazon Appstore.
The Amazon Appstore app will then appear in the Windows 11 Start menu
and be available on search, offering a catalogue of Android apps. The
Windows Subsystem for Android app, which lets you control mobile app
settings and features, will also appear in the Start menu.

Is this any better than installing Bluestacks, or some other Android
emulator on Windows, and getting the Android app from wherever you
choose rather than what Amazon carries?

Windows 11 minimum
Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA)
Amazon Appstore app
and finally the Android app (only through Amazon)

So, was all this mashup really needed with MS's WSA and Amazon? Or was
it because MS doesn't want to coordinate with Google to use Google's
Play Store? Amazon claims they have 50,000 Android apps, but they're
vastly games. With Google Play Store, I can use a web browser on any
platform to search for apps to see what they carry. Is this Amazon's
app store?

https://www.amazon.com/mobile-apps/b?ie=UTF8&node=2350149011
(removing the ie and node args results in "Sorry, page not found")

If so, yep, the The Register article article is still correct 8 months
later: that 50,000 count is vastly games. Try searching on Whatsapp.
Lots of non-game apps aren't there. The few MS Android apps I looked
for were there, like MS Outlook, but that wasn't a surprise since this
whole WSA thing has MS stroking Amazon.

I'm still back on Windows 10, so none of this WSA/Amazon crap is doable
on my platform. I was merely curious in what WSA was, but disappointed
when it was limited to Amazon. For me, Bluestacks would be a better
setup to run Android apps from any source on my Win10 box.

On 6/24/2023 12:07 PM, VanguardLH wrote:
> AJL <noemail@none.com> wrote:

>> When I went to the Microsoft Store to get a Kindle app for my
>> Windows 11 laptop, all it offered my search was a Kindle for
>> ANDROID app.

> Went to https://apps.microsoft.com/store/apps, and searched on
> "kindle" which found:
> https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/kindle-for-android/XP8LGC9MGZ8HD2

> Is that the one? You didn't give a URL to the app page.

I didn't give a URL because I didn't get it in a browser. I got it
directly from the Microsoft Store app.

> On that app page, it says: Requires Windows Subsystem for Android

That's true. When I installed the Android Kindle app, WSA was
automatically installed first, and then followed by the Kindle app
installation.

> So, to use the Kindle for Android app, you must also be on Windows
> 11. If you scroll to the end of the app page to see the System
> Requirements section, yep, Windows 11 is required, and build 21990.0
> or higher.

I'm using W11 22H2 22621.1848

> Their articles say you must install the Amazon appstore app:
> https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/amazon-appstore/9NJHK44TTKSX

Apparently not true. My Android Kindle app was installed and working
from the Microsoft Store before the Amazon App was installed. There are
also more Android apps for direct download in the Microsoft Store.

One that I may try is: WSATools APK installer. It says: Easy-to-use APK
installer for Windows Subsystem for Android™️ and more. Looks
interesting don't you think?

> Is this any better than installing Bluestacks, or some other Android
> emulator on Windows, and getting the Android app from wherever you
> choose rather than what Amazon carries?

I used to use BlueStacks to run Windows apps on my Android devices.

> So, was all this mashup really needed with MS's WSA and Amazon? Or
> was it because MS doesn't want to coordinate with Google to use
> Google's Play Store? Amazon claims they have 50,000 Android apps,
> but they're vastly games. With Google Play Store, I can use a web
> browser on any platform to search for apps to see what they carry.
> Is this Amazon's app store?

Amazon's actually very liberal. They let me run the Play Store and all
its apps on my Amazon Fire Tablets. Also they're easy to sideload.
(They're my only remaining tablets that still run my favorite
newsreader: Groundhog.) So who knows, maybe the big Google will
eventually come to Windows too...

> I'm still back on Windows 10, so none of this WSA/Amazon crap is
> doable on my platform.

That's likely your choice. All my W10 stuff was long ago upgraded.

> For me, Bluestacks would be a better setup to run Android apps from
> any source on my Win10 box.

Could be. I'll reserve judgement til I've played with this new toy awhile...

VanguardLH <V@nguard.lh> wrote:
> I'm still back on Windows 10, so none of this WSA/Amazon crap is doable
> on my platform. I was merely curious in what WSA was, but disappointed
> when it was limited to Amazon. For me, Bluestacks would be a better
> setup to run Android apps from any source on my Win10 box.

You can install the Play Store and Google Apps on WSA:
https://github.com/LSPosed/MagiskOnWSALocal

On 6/24/23 2:12 PM, AJL wrote:
>On 6/24/2023 12:07 PM, VanguardLH wrote:

>> For me, Bluestacks would be a better setup to run Android apps from
>> any source on my Win10 box.

>Could be. I'll reserve judgement til I've played with this new toy awhile...

My judgement is it's not ready for prime time. So it has been deleted from
my windows toys. Back to playing with this $90 (Android running) Chromebook
for awhile...