It can always be tempting to see what else you can do with devices you own unofficially, but due to an upcoming European law, there are reports that Apple is allegedly working on a way to allow alternative stores to be installed with applications.
According Report by Mark Guman in Bloomberg (opens in a new tab)this means that other storefronts such as Steam, Amazon, Microsoft, and others could offer individual stores and install apps through them, much like the App Store. This means developers can take 100% of the earnings while having more control over what the app can access, such as more graphical power and more control over what your Apple device offers.
However, developers like Riley Testut (opens in a new tab) and Shane Gill (opens in a new tab) have been developing an alternative for years, the so-called Alternative store (opens in a new tab). It offers “sideloading” apps, which means downloading apps to your Apple device without using the App Store that Apple doesn’t allow, such as emulators and virtualization software to easily run Windows XP on your iPad.
The best thing Apple can do, if that’s indeed the path it’s on, is take inspiration from the Alt Store and show that this path doesn’t mean the end of security on an Apple device – instead, it’s an opportunity for everyone.
The alternative is a tempting prospect for developers
Playing GameCube on my iPad Pro is incredibly fun. Thanks a lot @DolphinforiOS 😍 pic.twitter.com/WMn8eC4FuqMay 4, 2020
When the Alt Store first came out around 2020 I was curious and wanted to see how well the few games I own from the Sony PlayStation would run on my 12.9 inch 2018 iPad from an emulation app that was offered on the Alt Store, and they ran flawlessly. I had the 8BitDo controller paired with the device and when I connected the tablet to the TV, it felt like I was playing these games through the original Sony console.
Nearly three years later, Apple may somehow allow this before iOS 17 supposedly arrives next year. Granted, this is mostly due to upcoming European regulations that may require Apple to do this anyway, but it’s still good to see the company supposedly working on it.
For example, on a Mac, there is no problem installing apps that are not part of the App Store, mainly due to the fact that it is a device and operating system that has been around since the original Macintosh in 1984. it would be a huge criticism if you couldn’t allow non-App Store apps to be installed on the Apple Silicon Mac as users have been able to do this for years.
Security and privacy are values that Apple has valued in iOS for years, and rightly so. But as Alt Store has proven, it could unlock pent-up innovation along with a bigger payout for developers if they were able to use coding libraries previously exclusive to Apple teams.
Testut too received a great argument on Twitter (opens in a new tab) why is this good news for developers and i agree. It’s a trade-off to offer developers a different chance at what the App Store has been since its debut in 2008, and while I don’t expect emulators to be allowed whether or not these changes come in 2023, it’s an interesting future for devices Apple. as all.