Although more and more users are using Gnu / Linux on their computer, the truth is that many apps and web applications are still on mobile platforms. Platforms like Android or iOS. However, these applications cannot be installed on Gnu / Linux, at least they couldn't until now. A young project called Anbox will allow us to use and install Android apps on our Linux desktop.
This project uses container technology that allows you to recreate an Android environment so that the apk file of the app can be installed.
Anbox can only be installed on distributions that accept snap packages
Anbox is a free program and is already operational with certain Android programs and apps, but unlike other emulators, Anbox only works on distributions that support snap packages, as it is only distributed in this format. If we use a distribution that uses snap packages, we can install it by typing the following in a terminal:
snap install --classic anbox-installer && anbox-installer
Anbox is still an Android emulator for Linux but in this case it is not a complete emulator since you do not have access to the Playstore or Google Apps. It is an emulator that uses container technologies, specifically LXC technology.
This technology makes it possible to bring together in a single package all the necessary Anbox infrastructure and files so that it works without the need to use operating system files. Also, thanks to the snap format, Anbox can be updated without affecting other files of the operating system or vice versaIn other words, no update will affect the program.
Anbox is not the only alternative to have Android apps on our desktop. There are other alternatives such as using Chrome OS or Remix OS, Android or Chrome based operating systems that are adapted to the desktop. In any case, it seems that if we want to install an Android app on our Linux, we have an option to do so Do not you think?