Past the Alphabet
Past the Alphabet is a weekly column that focuses on the tech world each in and out of the confines of Mountain View.
Okay, the headline is likely to be a bit harsh, however I really feel just like the Play Retailer has advanced (or devolved) into a type of large indoor flea markets with each sq. inch packed to the purpose that it is spilled out into the car parking zone with folks establishing tables.
To proceed this random however apt analogy, you will head over and see the identical shops which have been there for years. You may additionally see a number of newcomers who’re attempting to slot in whereas providing a bunch of goodies for affordable. Then, there are those that do not absolutely perceive the idea of a “flea market” and are there for all the improper causes.
That is just about how the Play Retailer shakes out, with most of the ordinary suspects holding floor within the “Prime Charts.” Sometimes, a brand new app or sport will slowly (or rapidly) arrive with a whole lot of pleasure earlier than nestling in with the remainder and bumping others out. Then, we now have the nefarious apps. Those which have a pleasant coat of paint, however are solely there to both drain your Play Retailer steadiness or worse.
Fortunately, there are a number of trusted Play Retailer alternate options that I have been having fun with to assist make discovering apps thrilling once more.
Sufficient apps to make your head spin
My first drawback comes with truly discovering apps. As of early February 2025, 42matters claims there are nearly 2.1 million apps on the Play Retailer. Apparently, greater than 1,100 new apps are revealed day by day, with a mean of just about 42,000 apps arriving each month. This brings me to my first challenge with the Play Retailer — search.
How is it {that a} search engine may be so unhealthy at search? Certain, it really works fantastic if you already know the identify of the app that you just’re searching for. However attempt to seek for “KWGT” or “icon packs.” You may get loads of outcomes, however there isn’t any rhyme or motive for a way the choices are displayed. And it is not like you’ll be able to simply type by “not too long ago up to date” or by the best score.
In fact, this drawback actually solely surfaces when looking for extra broad phrases, nevertheless it’s nonetheless one thing that drives me loopy. It additionally drives me loopy that, with some app listings, it is virtually not possible to see the final time that it was up to date.
Talking of which, I can not let you know what number of instances I’ve gone to open and use an app, solely to have to attend for it to be up to date, even supposing it ought to have been up to date in a single day whereas my telephone was charging and whereas I used to be asleep. No, it is not some game-breaking drawback, but when I examine the field for an app or my telephone to do one thing, I anticipate it to be carried out.
Oh, and do not even get me began on video games. One of many largest the explanation why I am nonetheless subscribed to Play Go is that it surfaces video games that are not simply searching for methods to extract as a lot endurance and cash from me as doable. Which is strictly what a lot of the “Prime Charts” include anymore. It isn’t fully Google’s fault, however each Apple and Google are a bit responsible right here.
Moving into the world of FOSS
Would not ya know, for the two.1 million apps on the Play Retailer, there’s an entire world of apps which might be accessible. Lots of that are FOSS or “free and open supply software program,” and are just some faucets away.
F-Droid might be one thing you’ve got heard of earlier than, because it’s basically the Play Retailer for FOSS apps. The one “catch” is that you just first must sideload the F-Droid app or one of many purchasers like Neo Retailer and Droid-ify. And truthfully, you will in all probability wish to check out Neo Retailer or Droid-ify as a result of the F-Droid app itself appears to be like quite archaic.
That is the place my anti-Play Retailer journey started, as there actually are a whole lot of incredible open-source apps that do not get the popularity they deserve. Sure, there’s much more digging and nuance concerned, however ultimately, it is effectively value it.
However what in case you’re like me and have a curated record of open-source apps that you just wish to obtain and maintain up to date? Properly, that is the place Obtainium is available in.
Obtainium to the rescue
I first discovered about Obtainium early final yr, as I used to be increasing my information of retro gaming on Android handhelds. See, there are an honest variety of really helpful and dependable emulators on the Play Retailer, however there are much more that are not. On the time, this was earlier than Nintendo wrecked Change emulation, so Obtainium made it straightforward to maintain Yuzu and its forks up to date.
With Obtainium, you are in a position to bypass F-Droid or the Play Retailer and get apps and updates immediately from the supply. Nonetheless, there are “over a dozen supply web sites, together with GitHub, GitLab, and F-Droid.”
The method of including apps can nonetheless be tedious, particularly if the vast majority of them come from GitHub and you find yourself bumping up towards the speed restrict. That may be solved by signing up for a GitHub and/or GitLab account and producing a Private Entry Token that’s added to Obtainium.
Nonetheless, there’s additionally an answer to with the ability to maintain the record of apps throughout gadgets, while not having to manually add them each time. Obtainium enables you to export the record of apps that you have curated, full with any particular info that you have added such because the identify or class. So so long as you retain the exported JSON file backed up, you’ll be able to simply obtain Obtainium and import the record if you get a brand new Android machine.
The enjoyable does not cease there, nevertheless, as you may as well add issues and set them to “Observe-Solely.” With this, you will be notified when there is a new launch, nevertheless it’s not truly an app that may be downloaded. I exploit this to maintain monitor of when new drivers are launched, together with monitoring a number of forks of the identical app.
As a result of I have been getting an increasing number of open-source apps, and never simply those on Android, I’ve additionally began utilizing GitHub an increasing number of. So, after I discovered that I may create a repo and add my exported record of apps, I obtained fairly excited.
This fashion, I haven’t got to attempt to bear in mind what cloud storage service I uploaded it to whereas maintaining my “open supply world” tied collectively fairly properly. Plus, there are a bunch of “crowdsourced app configurations” that may be added with simply a few faucets.
Look, I do know that this is not a path that many will enterprise down, and it is okay in case you do not actually have points with the Play Retailer. However in case you’re like me and wish one thing higher, and that provides you extra management, undoubtedly take a look at Obtainium.
