Changes

|emulated = {{✓}}

}}

:''This page is about software that emulates Android on other hardware, like desktops.''{{for|emulators that run on Android|Emulators on Android}}

However, the Linux kernel is flexible enough that it can be emulated well, unlike iOS, older cell phone models, and older Japanese Galapagos mobile phones. While Android natively supports mice<ref group=N>If you have an Android device, you can confirm this by connecting a Bluetooth or USB mouse via a USB adapter.</ref>, most apps expect users to have a touchscreen, so Android emulators will usually default to emulating touchscreen presses like [[Nintendo DS emulators|DS emulation]] (though it can be less than ideal in many cases). The host's keyboard may often emulate the button controller add-ons, and some emulators support [[Xbox 360 emulators|Xbox 360]] controllers with some more tweaks.

<references group=N/>

==Emulators==

;Before diving in,

;*[[Hypervisors|Hardware-assisted virtualization]] feature must be turned from your BIOS for most of these methods due to performance reasons.

|-

! scope="col"|Name

! scope="col"|Platform(s)

! scope="col"|Version

! scope="col"|[[#Hardware_features|Hardware features]]

! scope="col"|[[#Enhancements|Enhancements]]

! scope="col"|[[Recommended Emulators|Recommended]]

|-

|-

|[[Genymotion]]

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}

|[https://www.genymotion.com/download/ {{GenymotionVer}}]

|{{~}}

|{{~}}

|-

|[https://play.google.com/googleplaygames Google Play Games]

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}

|[https://play.google.com/googleplaygames#section-system-requirements Beta]<br/>[https://developer.android.com/games/playgames/emulator Developer]

|{{~}}

|{{~}}

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}}

|-

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}

|Comes with Windows store<br/>[https://github.com/cinit/WSAPatch WSA patch for Windows 10]

|{{~}}

|?

|-

|?

|?

|-

|MuMu

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|macOS}}

|[https://mumu.163.com/global/download/en/index.html 1.1.0.2]<br /><small>[https://mumu.163.com 1.1.0.5 (v2.3.17) (Chinese Ver)]</small>

|?

|?

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}<ref group=N2 name=Bloatware></ref>

|-

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}

|[https://en.ldplayer.net/ 4.0.50.3]

|?

|?

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}<ref group=N2 name=Bloatware></ref>

|-

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}

|[https://www.bignox.com 7.0.2.7]

|?

|?

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}<ref group=N2 name=Bloatware></ref>

|-

|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}

|[https://www.memuplay.com/ {{MEmuVer}}]

|?

|?

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}<ref group=N2 name=Bloatware></ref>

|-

|-

|-

|?

|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}

|[[Anbox]]

|align=left|{{Icon|Linux}}

|?

|-

|-

|?

|-

|?

|-

|?

|}

<references group=N2 />

===Comparisons===

:A commercial software with a decent compatibility and performance. It has lots of [[#Enhancements|enhancement]] and [[#Hardware_features|hardware feature]] support. Newer versions bundled with "BlueStacks X" software and "BlueStacks services" which you can uninstall it afterwards, and you need to uninstall these during each update session unfortunately (BlueStacks Player do not need these apps). It includes Google Apps by default.

;MuMu Player

:;MuMu Player 6

:;MuMu Player X

:;MuMu Nebula

;MEmu

;LDPlayer

:Another closed-source Android emulator and also with good compatibility. When testing games alongside Nox, LDPlayer shows better performance/compatibility with games.

==Hardware features==

''These are Android operating system features. This list only includes hardware features that can be possible to emulated through software or will be possible in the near future. Including everything would result in an endless list.''

|- style="font-weight:bold;"

! colspan=2 | Name

! Bluestacks

! Google Play Games

|-

| colspan=2 | [[Wikipedia:Android_(operating_system)#Home_screen|Home screen]]<br/><small>This shouldn't be confused with emulator frontend/GUI.</small>

| {{✓}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✓}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/touch-and-input/game-controllers Game controllers]

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/4405061625485 *]

| {{?}}

| {{✓}}[https://tested.blissos.org/hardware/inputs/gamepad/ *]

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/touch-and-input/keyboard-input Keyboard input]

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}[https://youtu.be/2KEaPQpfzkQ?t=153 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}[https://youtu.be/2KEaPQpfzkQ?t=153 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{N}}[https://old.reddit.com/r/BlueStacks/comments/z54s8p/usb_devices_in_bluestacks/iy2gtgb/ *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}[https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/android/wsa/release-notes#build-220440000190 *]

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/studio/run/emulator-install-add-files Sideloading/Installing]

| {{?}}

| {{✓}}<ref group=N4>If you're using latest version of BlueStacks you'll need to install a file manager to copy game cache when loading your own .apk files, or simply use .xapk containers.</ref>

| {{✓}}

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/develop/connectivity/wifi/wifi-scan Wi-Fi]

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/develop/connectivity/bluetooth Bluetooth]

| {{N}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360061235612-Bluetooth-support-on-BlueStacks-5 *]

| {{?}}

| {{✓}}[https://tested.blissos.org/hardware/connectivity/bluetooth/ *]

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/develop/sensors-and-location/sensors/sensors_motion Motion sensors]

| {{Y}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058638032-Advanced-settings-for-key-controls-in-BlueStacks-5-#%E2%80%9C9%E2%80%9D *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059697231-How-to-log-in-to-Google-Play-Store-on-BlueStacks-5 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

|-

| colspan=2 | [[Wikipedia:Android_version_history#Android_4.4_KitKat|KitKat]] (API 19)<br/><small>Supporting [[Wikipedia:Android_version_history#Android_4.4_KitKat|Android 4.4 (KitKat)]] is crucial for emulators due to compatibility and [[Preservation_projects|preservation]] reasons.<br/> Older applications and games often rely on the "[[Wikipedia:Dalvik_(software)|Dalvik]]", which isn't present in newer versions and there could be '''[https://web.archive.org/web/20141215220606/http://www.androidruntime.com:80/list compatibility issues]'''.<br/>Android 5.0 (Lollipop)(API 21) introduced the "[[Wikipedia:Android_Runtime|Android RunTime]]" (ART), [[Wikipedia:Android_Runtime#History|replacing "Dalvik" entirely]].<br/>Having said that ART is mostly backwards compatible with Dalvik. See these sources for more information: [https://xdaforums.com/t/explained-art-runtime-in-android-4-4-kitkat.2622098/ 1], [https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/difference-between-dalvik-and-art-in-android/ 2], [https://developer.android.com/guide/practices/verifying-apps-art 3].</small>

| {{N}}<ref group=N4>You need to use [[Wikipedia:BlueStacks#BlueStacks_3|BlueStacks 3 version]] (not 3N), because it is the latest version supports KitKat.</ref>

| {{N}}

| {{N}}

|-

| colspan=2 | [[Wikipedia:Android_version_history#Android_7.1_Nougat|7.1 Nougat]] (API 25)<br/><small>New JIT Compiler, making for 75 percent faster app installations and a 50 percent reduction in compiled code size.<br/>JIT compiler with code profiling to ART, which lets it constantly improve the performance of Android apps as they run.<br/>Vulkan 3D rendering API support.</small>

| {{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=BluestacksOSsupport>[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058931031-How-to-utilize-the-different-Android-versions-available-on-BlueStacks-5#%E2%80%9C1%E2%80%9D Which Android versions are available on BlueStacks?].</ref>

| {{N}}

| {{N}}

|-

| colspan=2 | [[Wikipedia:Android_version_history#Android_12|Snow Cone]] (API 31)<br/><small>Android Runtime (ART) module added to the updatable core OS components via Google Play, added functionality to existing modules.</small>

| {{N}}<ref group=N4 name=BluestacksOSsupport></ref>

| {{Y}}

| {{N}}

|-

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://web.archive.org/web/20180507120451/https://developer.android.com/ndk/guides/abis#sa armeabi]

|-

| colspan=2 | [https://developer.android.com/ndk/guides/abis#v7a armeabi-v7a]<br/><small>Supporting armeabi-v7a ABI is crucial for emulators due to compatibility and [[Preservation_projects|preservation]] reasons.<br/> Older applications and games often rely on the [[Wikipedia:ARM_architecture_family|ARM 32-bit (Cortex)]] architecture, which isn't used in newer hardware.</small>

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=BlueStacksABI>[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058929011-What-is-Application-Binary-Interface-ABI-in-BlueStacks-5 What is Application Binary Interface (ABI) in BlueStacks 5 ]</ref>

|?

|?

|?

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=BlueStacksABI></ref>

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=GooglePlayGamesABI>[https://developer.android.com/games/playgames/start#playbility-architecture Google Play Games ABI Architecture support].</ref>

|?

|?

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=BlueStacksABI></ref>

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=GooglePlayGamesABI></ref>

|?

|?

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=BlueStacksABI></ref>

|{{Y}}<ref group=N4 name=GooglePlayGamesABI></ref>

|?

|?

|-

|-

|?

|?

|?

|?

|?

|-

|?

|?

|?

|?

|?

|-

|?

|?

|?

|}

<references group=N4/>

==Enhancements==

|- style="font-weight:bold;"

! colspan=2 | Name

! Bluestacks

! Google Play Games

|-

| [[Shader_Presets|Shader Chain]]

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| [[Wikipedia:Category:Anti-aliasing_algorithms|Post-rendering AA]]<br/><small>(FXAA, TXAA and MLAA/SMAA)</small>

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| rowspan=5 | [https://tasvideos.org/Emulatorresources/Features TAS features]

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://www.bluestacks.com/features/macros.html *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

| Rewind

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| Fast-Forward/Turbo Speed

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| Savestates

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| [https://tasvideos.org/Movies Movie recording/playback]

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

|-

| [[Save_disk_space_for_ISOs#PlayStation_1|Streamable compression format]]

| {{✗}}

| {{✗}}

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360055522292-How-to-use-the-Game-controls-menu-on-BlueStacks-5 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://old.reddit.com/r/BlueStacks/comments/163yg7p/command_line_options/ *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

| On-Screen Display<br/><small>Showcases messages, controller input state which is useful for speedrunners, performance data, active settings, and various notifications.</small>

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058928871 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

| [[Compatibility_layer|Built-in translation layer]]

| {{✓}}

| {{✓}}[https://developer.android.com/games/playgames/start#playbility-architecture *]

| {{?}}

|-

| File Sharing<br/><small>Similar to "Shared Folder" enhancement for [[Hypervisors#Type_2_hypervisors|Type-2 hypervisors]].</small>

| {{?}}

| {{~}}<ref group=N3>Only for media type files, it supports [https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360055684992-How-to-use-the-Media-Manager-on-BlueStacks-5 media file sharing via Media Manager].</ref>

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| Big Picture Mode

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

| {{Y}}[https://www.bluestacks.com/features/multi-instance.html 1][https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360052834092-How-to-create-and-manage-instances-using-the-Multi-instance-Manager-on-BlueStacks-5 2]

| {{N}}[https://youtu.be/2KEaPQpfzkQ?t=422 *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|-

| Debug features</br><small>adb support, [https://developer.android.com/agi AGI support], integration with IDE etc.</small>

| {{?}}

| {{~}}[https://support.bluestacks.com/hc/en-us/articles/360053245871-How-to-use-the-BlueStacks-5-Settings-menu#%E2%80%9C6%E2%80%9D *]

| {{Y}}[https://developer.android.com/games/playgames/pg-emulator *]

| {{?}}

| {{?}}

|}

<references group=N3/>

==Android consoles==

'''Note: [[Smart_TV_emulators|Smart TVs and smart TV boxes/digital media players/media boxes]] (e.g. ChromeCast with Google TV, Amazon Fire TV) are not consoles, despite some of them are able to run video games. The distinction is simple: If a device is not designed with gaming as its sole or main purpose, then it's not an Android console. Please do not add [[Home_Media_Player|Home media players]] or general Android devices that can play video games, such as [[Smart_TV_emulators|Smart TVs and smart TV boxes/digital media players/media boxes]] etc. to this section.'''

! scope="col"|Name

! scope="col"|[[MAME]] support

|

|-

|None

|None

|-

|}

==GM Android-based==

[https://developer.gm.com/app-gallery App Gallery].

*[[Wikipedia:Comparison_of_high-definition_smartphone_displays#720p_by_1280_.28HD_ready.29|Early Android devices with OLED and HD Ready display]]

[[Category:Android emulators|*]]

==Notes==

<references group=N />