BlueStacks brings App Player, 400,000 Android apps to Windows 8 (video)
Back in October, BlueStacks unveiled an alpha version of its App Player, bringing a slew of Android apps to Windows PCs, tablets and desktops. Today, the company expanded its reach with a new, Windows 8-compatible version of its software, integrating more than 400,000 Android apps into Microsoft's latest OS. The latest App Player, which will support both standard desktop and Metro UI modes, effectively allows Windows 8 users to run "most every app" from the Android catalog, without having to conduct any porting magic. BlueStacks demonstrated its new virtualization tool on a Windows 8 Ultrabook at CES today, and plans to bring the App Player to a brand new device this March, when Taiwanese manufacturer InHon releases its first Ultrabook, with the software pre-loaded. Head past the break for the full PR, along with a demo video.
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BlueStacks Announces Windows 8 Compatibility
Apps-on-PC company will bring 350,000+ Android apps to Windows 8 in 2012.
OEMs to release BlueStacks-enabled Windows 8 tablets and Ultrabooks.
CAMPBELL, CA – January 10, 2012 – BlueStacks announced today that its "App Player" software, which runs mobile apps natively on PCs and tablets, is now compatible with Windows 8. The company demonstrated the technology on a Windows 8 Ultrabook at CES today with reporters.
Windows 8 is Microsoft's first operating system built with mobility in mind, using the new "Metro" user interface. BlueStacks will integrate over 400,000 Android apps seamlessly into the operating system, where they will take the form of tiles alongside other programs. "The Metro UI is beautiful, but the number one thing Windows 8 is missing is apps," noted BlueStacks CEO Rosen Sharma. "This changes all that." BlueStacks makes creating mobile apps for the Windows 8 platform unnecessary, as most every app built for Android will now run on Windows 8 without any porting. The software will support both standard desktop and Metro UI modes.
BlueStacks is actively collaborating with top PC manufacturers to pre-load the BlueStacks App Player on Ultrabooks, tablets, notebooks and all-in-one desktop PCs. Their newest in a series of OEM partnerships is one with the Taiwanese manufacturer InHon. Inhon plans to release its first Ultrabook in March 2012 with BlueStacks App Player pre-loaded, followed by a Windows 8 Ultrabook later this year. "So many of the applications that people want to use have moved to mobile platforms," said InHon CEO HongFan Wei from Taiwan. "We're excited to be first to market with a Windows 8 Ultrabook that combines the best apps from both worlds."
BlueStacks was named a CES Innovations winner for 2012 at the conference this week. It is the only program worldwide that can run native mobile applications that are ARM-based or x86, windowed or fullscreen, on Windows PCs and tablets.
