Amazon rolls out Test Drive feature for select Android phones
Amazon began rolling out a mobile version of its Appstore’s Test Drive feature, which lets users try apps before they buy them.
The beta version of the new feature became available to certain types of Android phones Tuesday, the company announced on a blog. Test Drive will let users try out more than 5,000 Android apps before deciding whether or not they’d like to purchase them right from their phone.
Test Drive has been a staple of Amazon’s Appstore since last year, but it was previously confined to users’ desktops. Adding the feature to mobile, Amazon is putting it where most app purchases occur, according to the post.
“The more we remove friction for customers who want to try apps, the more apps they will try,” Jerry Heinz, Test Drive’s general manager, said in the blog post. “Those customers are more likely to find apps they are excited to download. In this way, Test Drive helps customers understand the value of premium apps and helps drive downloads of freemium apps.”
For now, the feature will also be confined to select apps, which are those using the touchscreen and accelerator inputs. The post says apps “that require Java Native Interface (JNI), keyboard, multi-touch, microphone, camera, gyroscope, near-field communication or GPS” are not yet being included, but over time, more will be added.
Test Drive will also make it onto more Android phones in the future, according to the post.
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