Google’s Chrome OS has been here for quite some time now but it has recently started gaining some important footing. What with the Chromebooks outselling Macs for the first time recently in the U.S. To build on the energy, Google announced at its I/O conference earlier this year that it will be bringing the Play Store to Chrome OS, which means Chromebook users will be able to enjoy millions of Android apps All things considered, Google has worked out as expected to its guarantee and has discharged the Chrome OS alpha form 53, which accompanies the Google Play Store application.
[ad type=”banner”]Sadly, the new Chrome OS update is only available for Asus Chromebook Flip as of now but we can expect it to arrive on other Chromebooks soon. So, if you have a supported Chromebook, here’s a way to get Play store to your tool:
Switch to the Developer Channel to get Play Store:
The Chrome OS alpha version is a developer only update right now, so you will should switch your Chromebook from strong to Developer channel. here’s how to do it:
Note: Switch to the developer channel on your Chromebook only if you want a taste of the latest Chrome OS alpha updates because the performance in this channel can be pretty unstable.
- 1. Go to Chromebook Settings and click on “About Chrome OS” button at the top.
- Then, click on the “More info…” button.
- In the next page, click on “Change Channel “.
- Select “Developer – unstable “.
- As soon as you change the channel to Developer,Chrome OS will start downloading the latest developer channel Chrome OS build.
- After the download is complete, you will find a “Restart to update” button in the status area. Click the button to restart your device. After the Chromebook restarts, you will find a Play Store icon in the bottom shelf.
Set up Play Store and run Android apps on your Chromebook:
When you try to open up Play Store on your Chromebook for the first time, you will notice that it’s not opening up. Well, you will first have to enable Android apps in Chrome OS settings to start using it. To do it, just head to Settings and check “Enable Android apps to run on your Chromebook “.
[ad type=”banner”]Note: You have to be logged in a Chromebook’s administrator account to enable this option and run Android apps.
Once done, you can click on the Play Store icon and set it up, like you would on a brand-new Android device. After the setup, the Play Store should open up and you can start installing apps.
Important Takeaways from the first Play Store laden Chrome OS release:
- Only apps with tablet UIs are available for download on the Play Store.
- You can check Android app settings by going to Chrome OSSettings and clicking on “App Settings” in the Android Apps section.
- The App Settings page opens up a Settings page similar to what we have come to expect from Android and it lets you manage apps. It also considers the Chromebook as an Android tablet running Android 6.0.
- You can even turn on “Allow installation from unknown sources” to install apps from APK files.
- The apps only run in a single fixed window mode or fullscreen and there’s no way to resize them. However, you can move them around.
- While most apps and games perform well on the Chromebook, some games, which require you to tilt for gameplay don’t work.