1. Android Studio emulator used to work with both 32-bit and 64-bit Windows, but it has recently depleted the 32-bit support. So now, even Android’s own emulator only works on 64-bit Windows. Most android emulators require an Intel processor, but some also have support for AMD processors.
2. Jul 18, 2018 AndY Android emulator. AndY Android emulator file size is about 900 MB and is able to run Android Application on computer. AndY has a smaller file size in comparison to BlueStacks and it takes less hardware resources as well. Here are the minimum capacities you need in order to run AndY on your computer: RAM: 3 GB.

Aug 01, 2019 Andy is an Android emulator that lets you download, install, and use hundreds of thousands of apps exclusive to Android on your Windows PC, all without having to set up a virtual machine or go through a complex setup process. Just install and start using it. Andy is incredibly intuitive: using the mouse cursor as you would do with your finger.

Emulation is a great tool that allows you to run something designed for one specific console on to another. So for example, in this case, today we’re talking about and comparing 2 emulators that will allow you to play your Android games and run your Android mobile apps right on your desktop.

May 02, 2021 Andy is an Android Emulator that stimulates and enables you to run any type of Android Application in your Operating system or WIndows. If you want to run a bunch of Android Apps on your computer then download Andy and enjoy its excellent features. Andy is a free Android emulator designed to give a full-fledged smartphone experience on a Windows PC. The application breaks the barrier between desktop and mobile computing, giving you access to thousands of Android apps right on your computer. The Andy app gives users unlimited storage, PC compatibility, and the ability to use most.

This is great for a couple of reasons. First, there’s a lot of intense games for mobile! Clash of clans and similar games require a lot of thought (and battery life). They’re really so big, that it would be amazing to play them right on your computer screen. This comes in handy for that, but also if you just use your computer more than your device, you can hook the emulator up to ensure you get notified about messages, so you don’t have to be tied to your phone all day.

Two very popular Android/PC emulators right now are BlueStacks and Andy. They’re both pretty amazing, so to help you narrow down which one you’d like to get, we’re going to compare their features. So without further ado, here’s our take.

Bluestacks

Bluestacks is an Android emulator for PC that has plenty to offer. After an easy download process, you can begin playing all of your favorite mobile games on the big screen: your PC! It’s not only for games though, because you can also utilize other popular apps like Whatsapp, Viber, facebook Messenger, and more.

A common theme among many emulators is that they just tend to be a little on the slow side, and also a little sparse on the scale of graphics quality. You’ll be pleased to hear, though, that this isn’t the case with Bluestacks. Because of their signature “layercake” technology, you’ll get access to all of your favorites, with fantastic quality graphics and smooth gameplay.

Get it here:Bluestacks

Andy

Andy is another great emulator. You can play all of your favorite games and access different apps, everything from Clash of Clans all the way to facebook or your messages. But the neat thing about this particular emulator is that you can really use your phone in tandem if you so choose. For example, you can convert your phone to an external controller, use it for cloud storage, and more. There’s also sensor, camera, and microphone integration, designed for an unforgettable gaming experience.

One of the neat things about Andy is that your games and apps will sync with your Google account. So if you’re playing on your computer and need to get to work, you can pick back up during your lunch hour on your phone. The seamlessness of it all is truly amazing, so you can just keep advancing in levels, whether you have an hour or just a few minutes here and there throughout your day.

Get it here:Andy

Comparison

Both Bluestacks and Andy are awesome emulators, and we’re pretty sure you’ll love whichever one you decide to get. The free programs themselves don’t have a whole lot of differences, as they both will support Android games and similar apps. But they do have their differences in other areas, believe it or not, so we’re going to go ahead and share those with you.

The major difference between Bluestacks and Andy is Enterprise. While you can download both Bluestacks and Andy for free for personal use, they both offer Enterprise options, which you’ll have to pay for, because it is a license.

Andy is very up-front with the cost of their Enterprise option. You can either pay $12 a month, or pre-purchase for the entire year at just $99. If you do this, you’ll be able to play on several different computers, get access to premium support (hello help from developers!), receive early access to new releases, and more. It’s really a great offer, and you know what you’re getting in to up front.

Bluestacks, on the other hand, is not so clear about how their Enterprise program works, although they do say it will remove their ads from the emulator. Their Enterprise program is more geared toward specifically being used in a commercial environment, so there’s more hoops you have to jump through. And when I say hoops, I mean creating an account with them, giving them your business information, contract agreement, and so on. While Andy’s Enterprise program is designed simply, for either standard users or commercial users (because both can benefit from the features), Bluestacks’ Enterprise program really is only for commercial users.

When it comes down to it, we really recommend that you delve even deeper and check out what interface you’d prefer, and more nitty gritty details. As we previously mentioned, both emulators are going to run the same games and other apps, but what kind of experience are you looking for? If you’re willing to pay a few bucks each month, Andy’s Enterprise program promises a lot, even if you’re not a business looking to use their program.

Verdict

You can’t go wrong with either of these great emulators. If you truly just can’t decide, we recommend trying them out. Yes, both! Because the basic versions are entirely free, you’ve got nothing to lose in taking each for a spin. And when you do pick one, be sure to tell us all about it in the comments section. We’d love to hear your thoughts on the program!

It has been reported that a GPU Miner Trojan is being installed along with the popular Andy Android emulator and its users are rightfully concerned. This miner reportedly will use the graphics processing unit, or GPU, on the computer's graphic's card in order to mine cryptocurrency.

In a post on Reddit by user named TopWire. it was stated that Andy was installing a GPU Miner Trojan without a user's knowledge. This Miner would be installed as C:Program Files (x86)Updaterupdater.exe and when launched would use up the GPU on the computer. The user also posted a YouTube video showing this behavior, which is displayed at the end of this article.

What is concerning is that the Reddit poster has stated that he has tried to bring this up to the Andy team via the Facebook user group numerous times and has been repeatedly kicked out each time.

What happens when you install Andy?

When I downloaded and tested the current Andy executable, I automatically saw something that rang alarm bells. It was using an adware bundler for its installer, which are known to sometimes perform sneaky installs of miners onto user's computers without their knowledge or permission.

According to VirusTotal, the Andy installer is being detected as an InstallCore variant, which is a known adware installer that present users with various 'offers' when installing free software. These installers allow developers of free software, such as Andy, to generate revenue each time someone installs their program.

When testing the current Andy installer, I was presented with offers for Avast, the Search Manager Chrome Extension, and WinZip, which I declined.

Even after declining all of these offers, a program was still installed on my test computer. Guess what? It was a file called C:Program Files (x86)Updaterupdater.exe. For me, though, the program just generated an error when it was executed.

If this file is indeed a GPU miner, I could be receiving this error because I am running it on a virtual machine that does not have a dedicated graphics card on it. When scanning it using VirusTotal, it does not indicate that it is a miner.

The updater.exe file posted by the Reddit, though, is clearly detected as a Miner. Furthermore, when examining the strings found in the Updater.exe Miner variant posted on Reddit, its strings indicate it is one as well.

Where is the installer coming from? The installer or Andy?

When testing the Andy installer using the sandbox site Any.Run, you can see a file called GoogleUpdate.exe being executed. When executed with the command line 'GoogleUpdate.exe /svc' it launches another program named UpdaterSetup.exe, which installs the Updater.exe program and configures it to automatically start when you log into Windows.

Andy Emulator System Requirements

This GoogleUpdate.exe program has a description of 'AndyOS Update', which indicates it's part of Andy. Why it is named GoogleUpdate is not known, but I feel it is strange.

Furthermore, the GoogleUpdate.exe file is code signed by 'Andy OS Inc'. This indicates that the file belongs to Andy OS Inc or at least was intentionally signed by them.

Andy Emulator Download

Finally the signature further indicates that it belong to Andy OS Inc.

As the GoogleUpdate.exe is signed using a signature that is owned by Andy OS Inc, it would indicate that this file it one that belongs to them.

Nox Player

While Bleeping Computer has not been able to corroborate that Andy is installing Miners onto user's computers, we could confirm that it is creating an Updater.exe executable as described by the Reddit user's post. For now, it is advised that users do not install Andy until further information is given by the Andy developers.

Andy Emulator Uptodown

Below is the video created by TopWire that demonstrates what he saw when installing Andy.

Andy Emulator 2020

Bleeping Computer has reached out to both the marketing contact and support contacts at Andy OS for comment, but have not heard back at the time of this publication.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.