F-Droid 1.0 has been released today. It is an Android application that provides users with a catalog of free and open source software that users can install on their Android devices.
Note: The last version is offered is on the main F-Droid homepage at the time of writing. You need to visit this page on the website to download version 1.0 of the application. Also, note that you need to enable the installation of apps from unknown sources in the settings to install the application.
F-Droid is an alternative application store for Android. Useful for Android users who don’t want to link their device and data to the Google ecosystem, and also for installing applications that are not offered on Google Play.
F-Droid 1.0
F-Droid 1.0 comes with a redesigned interface. The application opens a what’s new page on start that highlights new releases.
Note that you cannot switch the program language anymore, at least not right now. This means that you are stuck with the Android device’s language (that’s why you see German words on the screenshot above).
As far as new features are concerned, there are plenty:
- Improved tracking protection (HTTP Etag, TLS).
- Background updates with privileged extension. workflow for updating applications overhauled completely.
- Faster index updates.
- A “What’s New” section that highlights changes in the current release.
- Screenshots and feature graphics support, if available.
- Fully translatable app summaries and descriptions.
- Support installing media, OTA, Zip and other files.
- Donations to app developers highlighted.
The general feel of the application has not changed however. You can still browse the store by category or by using search, and install the most recent version of an application, or a previous version. This is another advantage that F-Droid offers over Google Play, as you get only one version on the official Google Play store when you install applications.
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Several alpha versions of F-Droid 1.0 were released in the past months. These highlight additional improvements, for instance that the performance of the user interface has improvement, that temporary and cached files are cleaned up properly, or that warnings are displayed with actions in the updates tab for known vulnerabilities.
Now You: do you use F-Droid on your Android device?