Android App Bundles are replacing APKs – why it matters
Google Play Store is constantly evolving to meet the growing needs and demands of Android users and developers. Many of those improvements rely on automated systems powered by AI and machine learning, particularly in screening apps for malware or prohibited content. There are times, however, when changes require developers to make changes in the way they write and distribute their apps. One of the most disruptive changes is coming in August when Google Play Store switches to App Bundles instead of APKs as its standard package format, a change that will affect not only developers but also Android users, hopefully for the better.
Short for Android Packages, APKs have long been Android’s standard package format for apps and games. More analogous to Java’s JAR archives (and is, in fact, an extension of it), APKs are designed to bundle everything that an app needs to be installed on a device, from code to assets like images and sounds, some of which would have different versions for different kinds and sizes of devices. As Android’s ecosystem grew, however, so did the number of things that needed to be packaged in an APK for it to even work.
APKs, however, didn’t scale well to Android’s growth and Google had to make workarounds for larger apps, particularly games that sometimes needed gigabytes of additional data. That workaround came in the form of OBBs that needed to be downloaded even before you could start playing a game or using the app. These are the problems that Android App Bundles are promised to solve, and while the changes should be transparent to users, they should still be very noticeable.
