After denying Windows phones, Snapchat finally arrives on the Microsoft Store
After years, Snapchat is finally in the Microsoft Store as a Progressive Web App.
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What you need to know
Social media platform Snapchat’s history with Microsoft’s Windows-based ecosystem has been complicated, to say the least. In the past, Snapchat has seemingly done everythingexceptsupport Windows or Windows phones, even building AR glasses, but that all changes today. Snapchat is in the Microsoft Store, as of this month.
For years, the lack of Snapchat on Microsoft’s now-dormant Windows phones was a constant hot topic of discussion in the community (thisWindows Central article from 2015gives you a quick overview from the period, with 400 reader comments to boot). Long after the entire mobile Windows platform was shuttered by Microsoft, Snapchat is finally making its appearance in the Microsoft Store as a Progressive Web App, or a PWA.
What does this mean? The app is built on the web version of Snapchat — which only launched a few months ago — and is powered by Microsoft’s Chromium-based Microsoft Edge. That means a tiny 1.4MB install size, and it guarantees that Snapchat is always up to date and has the exact same features as the web version. Since it works through Microsoft Edge, Windows will still treat it like a native app — including an app icon in the Start Menu, notification support, and more.
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You’ll need a Windows 10 orWindows 11PC, of course. Snapchat’s denial of Windows phones may have partially contributed to the platform’s demise, but it’s far too late for any one social media app to suddenly breathe life into the phones that, by this point, are resting comfortably in drawers all over the world. Now, instead of trying to coerce developers into supporting its mobile platforms, Microsoft is reportedly taking the fight straight to Google and Apple bybuilding its own mobile app store.
If you’re interested in perusing your Snapchat messages or stories from yourfavorite Windows laptop, or in taking pictures for Snapchat on your computer (for some reason), you can download the Snapchat PWA from the Microsoft Store for free right now. Or spitefully avoid it in remembrance of the Windows phones that came before.
Snapchat
After years of waiting, Snapchat has finally come to the Microsoft Store. This is a PWA, meaning it has a tiny install size and is reliant on Microsoft Edge to function, but will always be up to date.
Free at:Microsoft
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Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter@BoddyZachary.
