Windows Marries Android, Thanks to BlueStacks
Thanks to the folks at BlueStacks, you can now run your favorite Android Apps on your Windows PC! The BlueStacks App Player, which is still in its alpha stage, lets you run several preloaded Android apps, install up to 26 others, and sync apps from an Android phone to your PC.
Installing the app might take a few attempts. But after it has been installed using it is a breeze. The app places an Android gadget in the upper right corner of your screen. Clicking on the gadget opens a menu from which you can launch any of the preloaded Android apps, including Bloomberg News, Bubble Buster, Words Free, and Drag Racing, along with six others.
The apps themselves launch in a full-screen virtualized version of the Android operating system, so they run smoothly. The only obstacle that you might encounter is that since the apps are designed for a touch screen device, running them on a desktop computer with keyboard and mouse would be a bit of a pain. Using a laptop with a multitouch pad would be a better option though. Overall, the integration with Windows via a simple desktop gadget proved to be clean and seamless.
You can click on the option to add more Android apps, which requires you to log into the BlueStacks App Channels using a Facebook account. From the Channels page you can download apps that connect you to the Web sites of dozens of newspapers and news outlets, as well as a host of games, including Checkers, MineSweeper, Sudoku, and Memory Trainer.
To send apps from your phone or tablet to your PC, you'll first need to download the BlueStacks Cloud Connect App on from Google's Android Market and install it on your mobile device. Entering a unique pin number in the app then sets up the connection with your PC, allowing you to push over apps from your device.
For now the App Player supports only Windows PCs. The company is working on a Mac version but it may be a while before the Mac version is available. BlueStacks is also busy cooking up a premium version of the App Player, which as yet has no price tag, but would support such apps as Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja, and let you add an unlimited number of apps.
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