14 DAY TRIAL // Since Microsoft announced last year two new projects with the purpose of bringing Android and iOS app to Windows Phone much easier, developers have been trying to tinker with the tools they have been given.
Project Islandwood and Project Astoria functioned with some success for a few months, but ultimately Microsoft had to decide on which one to focus since feedback received from developers suggested that “having two Bridge technologies to bring code from mobile operating systems to Windows was unnecessary.”
Today, Microsoft confirmed what we already knew it would happen: the cancellation of the Project Astoria. After carefully taking into consideration all the feedback received, Microsoft has decided that it would be better to focus fully on Project Islandwood, also known as Windows Bridge for iOS.
Project Astoria is history; Android developers put on hold
Going forward, Windows Bridge for iOS will be the only option for developers to bring their apps and games to all Windows 10 devices, including Xbox and PCs.
If you're a developer that only creates apps for Android, then you are encouraged to check out the iOS Bridge and Xamarin solutions.
“The philosophy behind the Bridges has always been to make it as easy as possible for you to bring existing code to Windows, and our investments in the iOS Bridge will make this straightforward.
“We initially focused on API coverage for game developers, but we are expanding our API coverage for all app types by adding support for additional frameworks, etc. We’re aiming for significant development cost savings for the majority of ‘typical’ apps – keep an eye on the project on GitHub, and of course we welcome direct contributions, helping us all out!” explains Microsoft in a blog post.
According to Microsoft, more details on the Windows Bridge for iOS, Xamarin and its Universal Windows Platform will be available at Build this year.