> > This app isn't available for your device because it was made for an older version of Android.
I wonder if it really "doesn’t run on recent android devices", or if it's just that Google doesn't want you to install it (because it was made for an older version of Android and Google doesn't like that), and if you somehow downloaded the APK and manually installed it, it would run just fine. I suspect it's the later case... In my experience, other than the missing software version of the legacy hardware menu key, Android's compatibility with software made for older versions of Android is quite good.
Yeah, does anyone know what causes this to happen and if it can be worked around? I was under the (possibly mistaken) impression that Android backwards compatibility was actually decent (in contrast to iOS).
It's been quite a while since I dipped my hand in Android development, but from what I recall when you made an Android project, you had to set the API "Level" - which changes every new version of Android.
I assume Google is looking at that value, comparing it to the current running API and blocking installation because the API the app is using is too old, with new permissions conventions that are built into the newer API versions running on more modern phones.
I believe they also limit(ed) installation of apps made for tablets on phone screen devices (and vice versa) through the devices' DPI settings.
I believe you can easily sideload these apps into Android and have them run mostly flawlessly, but Google Play Services blocks install probably to prevent people from installing old/possibly incompatible apps on their platform.
My X270 motherboard conked out a few months ago and I had the same app issue as OP. Sideloading the APK did let the app install, but it's non functional.
> > This app isn't available for your device because it was made for an older version of Android.
I wonder if it really "doesn’t run on recent android devices", or if it's just that Google doesn't want you to install it (because it was made for an older version of Android and Google doesn't like that), and if you somehow downloaded the APK and manually installed it, it would run just fine. I suspect it's the later case... In my experience, other than the missing software version of the legacy hardware menu key, Android's compatibility with software made for older versions of Android is quite good.