There may be a lot of situations where you cannot download apps directly from Google Play. For one, you may have a device that is not licensed by Google. Another reason why you wouldn’t be able to download certain applications from Google Play is your device is listed as unsupported for these apps while in reality, you may just have a Qualcomm native tablet running Android, but it’s not listed anywhere on Google Play. One more reason why some users wouldn’t want to set up their Google accounts on newly purchased Android smartphones or tablets is privacy. Google accounts create a major privacy loophole siphoning personal data about users to advertisers and third-party applications. Like it or not, if you want to use Android apps and games, you have to compromise on privacy and security.
Enter APK Downloader.
It is available as a standalone web service. You can use it on your Android device via browser or as a Chrome extension, but the best way is to download Android apps from your desktop computer or laptop and install them on your Android device later on.
It is free of charge, but donations are welcome. The file you will be downloading via APK Downloader is the same file you would otherwise download from Google Play, but you cannot download paid applications. The app has 1400 apk files quota per day and if you cannot download directly, you should use Chrome extension.
Another important feature is you can use https to download your apps. As far as Chrome extension is concerned, you will need to enter your email address and device ID, as well as your wireless carrier. If you oppose to entering your credentials, you can simply download the apps from the browser service – it does not require neither your email, nor your password and there will be no country restrictions.
This free web service allows you to download any Google Play store application as long as it is free on the marketplace.
The procedure is quite simple – you just paste the link from the Google Play store to the application you would like to download on the APK Downloader website and press enter. The web service then generates a download link you can click and get the APK file downloaded directly onto your desktop system or laptop.
Pros
You do not need to log into your Google account to be able to download free Android apps and games from Google Play store, irrespective of your country, device and wireless carrier. You download the file onto your desktop or laptop from the browser, copy it to your Android device and install it.
Cons
When you use the web service, you do not need to log into your Google account, but the one drawback is the web service runs out of quota pretty fast. You could wait for the application to become available again, or, alternatively, you could use the Chrome extension, in which case you will need to enter your Google Play email address and password, but it is always better to be on the safe side, so we recommend you wait for the quota to be replenished for the day.
One more limitation is you cannot use the web service to download paid applications from Google Play.
Conclusion
If for some reason you wouldn’t want to use your Google account to download apps from Google Play, or you simply cannot have access to Google Play due to country restrictions or device manufacturer or an outdated model of your device, you can use this free and straightforward web service to get your hands on the latest and the greatest of the Android apps and games. It is a very useful solution empowering users from all over the world to enjoy the best of Google Play without using their Google accounts.
