Sometimes, we may want to directly install the APK version of an application that we are interested in having on our mobile. There are many reasons such as that our mobile is not supported by the Google ecosystem as it is outdated, that our account has been deleted or stolen ... Now we ask ourselves, Where to download APKs safely and how to install them?
Luckily, Android is a much less closed system than one might think and not everything happens automatically through the Google Play Store. This means that if we find a place from which to download an APK of an application, we will not have problems, nor will the warranty or support be invalidated in case the application gives us problems.
Places to download an APK from
One of the most common places to find APKs is the huge number of secondary Android app marketplaces. There is a wide variety of stores or repositories of Android applications, some of them with their own payment system and tracking and updating of Apps. It is normal for a manufacturer such as Samsung, Huawei or Xiaomi to have their own application marketplace, and there are also third-party services such as iDownload.
There are also websites that are dedicated to collecting backup copies of installable applications, or what is the same, copies of the APK. We can download them from our PC or from our mobile, and install it as if we had downloaded it from the PlayStore. Some even have access to PlayStore payments for services such as microtransactions in games like Pokémon Go when it was released in a few countries before being released worldwide.
Downloading APKs from third-party app stores or repositories allows you to bypass regional limits imposed by Google. At the end of the day, at most it prevents access to the deleted app in some territories, but it does not prevent a copy from being made and uploaded to other websites and other users can install it at their own risk.
There are also cases such as that some developers allow us to download their application or game from their website after a possible payment process. For example, installing the APK of Among Us which is free, you could play it on Android or even PC thanks to an Android emulator, which made the game widely popular and accessible. When they sell Android games in the Humble Bundle, they usually give access to the APK.
Possible risks of downloading APKs
Installing an APK may involve some other risk, depending on where you got it. If you got it from a responsible mass repository or an app store not affiliated with Google Play, it is most likely a safe download. It is easy to think that you can get a virus, but a large website that lives on being a trusted website and to which it goes on a regular basis, cannot allow its downloads to be harmful to users.
If you downloaded the APK from an official store or website, you shouldn't have a virus problem on Adroid. But not so that it works properly. One of the functions of Google PlayS tore is that it does not allow application downloads on devices that do not support it correctly, a function that many are grateful for because this prevents them from downloading apps that could fail. So, if you install an APk on your own in a device that is not very powerful or does not have the latest security updates, you could end up installing an app that will not work because you are forcing its installation.
The risk of viruses and malware when installing an APK exists and they can well access your mobile without having to ask for permissions, so you must go to trusted websites and app stores. But in the worst case, they come from little-known websites and are usually very deep search results on Google pages. These websites tend to be maintained by fleeting visits, so if you see that it is a very little-known website, with many words written mechanically, avoid downloading from these types of pages.
How to install an APK on Android
If we download the APK from a third-party store or from the creator's official website without going through Google Play, we will be downloading a container file that can be installed, but we will not be installing it. If we have downloaded it from our PC, we must transfer it to our Android by transferring data via cable, or using a service such as Google Drive or Dropbox that allows us to download from the cloud. Ideally, we keep it either at the root, or
Before continuing, we will have to make sure that we have activated the security option that allows us to install applications from unknown sources. This option is set so that the terminal makes sure that no application is installed without going through the original Google Play Store. So that we can install non-Google Play APKs we will have to follow the following steps:
- Go to the Settings section, which is usually in the form of an app in the application menu of all Android.
- Go to the Security option, since allowing the installation of non-Google Play applications is a device security issue.
- Look for the Installations of Unknown Origin option.
- Grant the permissions to the File Manager or File Manager application so that you can install APKs.
- Go to the File Manager application or the application that your mobile allows you to look through its folders.
- Find the folder where you have saved the APK, and make the file manager activate the APK.
- Give it to accept the installation and the necessary permissions.
If the installation has been correct, you will be able to enjoy the application, as long as your mobile can support it and run it without problems. It should be said that if you have not downloaded an APK from an application store that supports it, you will have to look for the application updates.
