Google is working on a new feature for the Play Store that will auto-open apps after installation. Currently, users have to manually open an app from the Play Store’s app listing page or through the app drawer. However, the upcoming Play Store update will save users this effort for added convenience.
As spotted by Android Authority in an APK teardown of Google Play Store version 42.5.15, the feature adds a new “Turn on Auto-open” toggle underneath the Open button on Play Store listings of apps after you select Install. If you enable the auto-open feature, the toggle’s description will change to “Automatically open after install,” and the Play Store will then launch the newly installed app as soon as the installation process finishes.
After the download reaches 100% and the Play Store starts installing the app, a notification appears, indicating the time remaining before the app opens automatically. Code related to this feature suggests that the notification will always display a 5-second countdown, allowing users to easily anticipate how long it will take for the app to launch once the notification appears.
The outlet notes that the auto-open apps feature in Google Play Store is fully functional in the APK version that was investigated, which means it will soon reach all users as well.
Meanwhile, Google recently also added the functionality of concurrent updating or installing of up to 3 apps in Play Store. Once you tap on the ‘Update all’ button, Google Play Store can now download updates for up to 3 apps at once and even install them simultaneously. Apps that are in the list to download beyond the three that are being updated show the ‘pending’ status which is the usual status we have been seeing for years.