Downloading or updating apps on Play Store can take quite a long time as Play Store processes them one by one. This might be frustrating especially if you have a long list of app updates waiting to be installed.
Luckily, a new development seems to now allow you to download three apps from the Google Play Store at the same time. Notably, this also works when updating apps.
About 10 years ago, when the Google Play Store was called “Android Market,” users could download or update multiple apps at once. However, this feature was removed and unavailable for years. However, now, it seems that the feature has returned.
The folks at 9To5Google discovered that a new feature in the Play Store lets you download and install updates for multiple apps. It's worth noting that this feature doesn't allow you to download more than two apps at the same time. This also applies to installing app updates. The fourth app download or update will be marked as “pending.”
This isn't a sudden change of heart from Google: In April, the Play Store added the ability to download or update two apps at the same time, but the feature was removed within days of its introduction.
Thankfully, Google has reportedly increased the limit of simultaneous downloads or updates to three with a new feature.
It's unclear whether this feature will manifest as a server-side change by Google or require an update to the Play Store itself.
This new feature is in line with the Apple App Store's ability to allow users to download up to three apps at a time.
Google has been working on a few things behind the scenes. We recently learned that the Google Play Store might soon let you update apps that were sideloaded from the Play Store. Additionally, Google announced the end of its bug bounty program for the Play Store app after nearly seven years.
Let us know in the comments below if you can download or update the three apps simultaneously in your area.