Future of ARC Welder

In August 2016, Google announced that they would be "removing support for packaged and hosted apps from Chrome on Windows, Mac, and Linux over the next two years." Although Google have not made a definitive statement either way, it is widely believed that this means that ARC Welder will cease to be a viable solution for running Android apps on Windows machines: it could be removed from the Chrome Web Store in the second half of 2017, meaning no new installations, and stop working entirely from early 2018. The reason for the uncertainty is that while ARC Welder is itself a Chrome Extension, it installs and runs Android apps as Chrome Apps. Whether or not Google will provide an alternative (such as native support for Android apps in the Chrome Browser) is not known at this time.

In the absence of ARC Welder or another solution from Google, alternative methods for testing Android apps are:

• a physical Android device, typically a small tablet such as the Amazon Fire 7
• an Android emulator for Windows such as Nox or BlueStacks
• ARC Welder on a Chrome OS machine, such as a ChromeBook

The preferred and recommended method is to use Android tablets, as this gives students the most engaging experience, allows the use of all sensors and media capabilities, and is typically the most reliable method, requiring only that the tablets have an internet connection. A ratio of one tablet between four students is sufficient: with tablets from €70, a class of 24 students could be facilitated for €420 (the same price as a single iPad).