Amazon Lets Users Buy Android Apps Before Their New Device Even Ships

As Amazon nears the launch of its Android Appstore, it has provided an update to developers that focuses on a seamless buying experience for the customer.

For developers interested in participating, their mobile applications will now show all over the e-commerce site, appearing in everything from search results to bestseller lists, the company said in a blog post.

Even more interestingly, apps can be purchased in advance, allowing users to buy them before the tablet or Android device arrives on their doorstep.

For example, if you buy an Asus Android tablet on Amazon, you can also stock up on apps at that time, even though you haven’t received the tablet yet. The apps will then be installed once the tablet arrives because they are associated with the person’s Amazon.com account.

The process sounds a lot like one of Kindle’s features that people find amazing, and will go a long way in wooing developers, who are critical to the Appstore’s success.

What’s more, when another customer is viewing the product page for the Asus Android tablet, there’s a high likelihood that the apps the person previously downloaded will show up in a section called “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought…”

No update on when the Appstore will launch, other than it is coming soon.

The other big difference between Amazon’s store and what Google offers in the Android Market is that Amazon will be setting the price for apps–a move that has been a little controversial.

While developers will lose that flexibility, they will gain access to Amazon’s large base of customers, which already have credit cards on file with the e-commerce provider.

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