As of 2022, Android has the ability to archive apps, although technically this is a trick of Google Play and not the operating system. It seems that the experience went well, since everything seems to indicate that Android 15 will add the option of archive apps natively.
The latest Android 14 QPR betas let us know better What will this option for archiving applications look like? directly from the system, without Google Play intervening. And it looks very good.
The happy medium between uninstallation and installation
One of the most effective ways to free up space on your phone is to uninstall apps, although sometimes you’ll prefer not to in case you need them later. Soon you will have an intermediate option: archive it. Until now, archiving applications was only possible from Google Play and without much control over it: applications are archived automatically when you haven’t used them for a long time
Although Google Play is waiting to allow us to archive apps manually, in Android 15 we will be able to do it from outside the app store. The concept is exactly the same: keep a minimum version of the installed application, freeing up 60% storage on average.
Application archives on Google Play
Mishaal Rahman managed to enable native app archiving in Android 15 and the good news is that it will be simple and intuitive, as you can see in the demo video below. The archives will be a new button in the information of an applicationnext to Uninstall Yes Force close.
And what happens when you press this button? In the specific case of the following video, the Uber application goes from occupying 387 MB to 17.64 MB, or 95.4% less. What happens when you archive it is that the normal application is replaced by a minimal version (with the icon and nothing else), also retaining the data.
An archived app retains its place in the app drawer and launcher, albeit with a cloud icon overlaid, indicating that it must be downloaded in order to use it. Indeed, the first time we press it it will be downloaded and will install from Google Play. When you open it, it will be as before, since the user data has not been deleted.
Android 15 will give us the ability to Automatically archive apps we don’t use for a long time, which adds to the limitations of inactive apps that exist today, such as turning off their notifications or clearing their cache.
Via | Android Authority
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