topbanner_forum
  *

avatar image

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?

Login with username, password and session length
  • Thursday December 5, 2024, 12:58 am
  • Proudly celebrating 15+ years online.
  • Donate now to become a lifetime supporting member of the site and get a non-expiring license key for all of our programs.
  • donate

Author Topic: playstore downloads  (Read 3447 times)

Target

  • Honorary Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 1,832
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
playstore downloads
« on: September 21, 2021, 05:43 PM »
anyone know what the go is with playstore download sizes?

I'm finding that the listed update sizes do not correspond to the actual download sizes (assuming I can believe those values are correct as well...)

Typically I'm finding that the actual download size is typically 2 or 3 times what's shown before you press the update button

Could be I'm just old and cranky, but I manage my data use pretty carefully (its expensive!) and this seems like a pretty gross misrepresentation

Shades

  • Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 2,939
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: playstore downloads
« Reply #1 on: September 21, 2021, 08:41 PM »
It is my assumption that compression is used in the APK you download from the store. Perhaps a separate layer of compression is used by the app builder before creating the APK, for the purpose of reducing the transfer file size even further. As lots of people are paying for data transfers, it makes sense to use whatever compression is available. This may lead to much larger install sizes, but should not affect your data transfer costs.

To prevent issues like this, I have set the Android version (10) on my phone to download only when connected to WiFi. This works for me, because I don't care about playing games, or watch video or shoot pictures or visit internet sites. My requirements would be met with a semi-smart phone that is capable of WhatsApp, Skype, Teams and Google Maps. Maybe 2 times a year I have a need to use the camera on my phone. On occasion I do use WiFi analyzer software, to see if there are problems with WiFi, which channels are free (enough) etc. But that is my use case for it. So the option 'Only download on WiFi' is perfectly usable for me and as a bonus, not waste any more money on such devices than I have to.

It might be a good setting for yourself as well, if you have a plan with (severe) limitations for your phone.

Also, file size of the application to download is not the same as the file size of the application when stored. The file system of any operating system reports only the size when stored. File systems divide the storage capacity up into certain size of blocks and it reserves enough of those blocks to store the application. The file system will also try to fill these blocks with file data as efficiently as possible, but you should expect sometimes big differences there. Block sizes that are large improve file read/write access, but at the cost of available storage space. Block sizes that are small are great for storage space, but your file read/write access suffers greatly.

Updates for all the apps on my phone do appear to report the correct file size. My phone is a Huawei P20 Pro and it uses EMUI as a shell around Android. Perhaps the manufacturer of your phone uses their shell around Android which might have a problem reporting the correct file size. The EMUI shell I never found so intrusive as other shells on different brands of phones/tablets I have seen. But that might not be the same for you.

Target

  • Honorary Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 1,832
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: playstore downloads
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2021, 09:15 PM »
yep get all that, but I'm not altogether sure thats the issue here

when I go to the updates page on playstore, it lists all the apps that have updates pending AND a 'size' for each one (one I did last nite was 60Mb)

However, when you 'update' you get the usual download graphic with a progress bar, in this case it was n% of 190Mb

Now it's safe to say that its some time since I went to school and a lot of things have changed a lot, but I'm pretty sure that no matter how you cut it 60 will never equal 190

Could be they're reporting different things, but that would just be misleading and something I'm sure google can't be accused of...


4wd

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 5,644
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: playstore downloads
« Reply #3 on: September 21, 2021, 10:23 PM »
The size reported in pending updates is the approx. download size, when it's downloading it shows the installation size as well as the amount that it's downloading, (which will be equivalent to the pre-update size reported), see below for an example:

Screenshot_20210922-130955.png

I'd say the Netflix update includes more functions or a rewrite, that's why the update is larger than the install.

What is annoying after recent Play updates is how damn slow it is to scan for updates.

Target

  • Honorary Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 1,832
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: playstore downloads
« Reply #4 on: September 21, 2021, 11:22 PM »
The size reported in pending updates is the approx. download size, when it's downloading it shows the installation size as well as the amount that it's downloading, (which will be equivalent to the pre-update size reported), see below for an example:

that's...weird...

I guess there could be a reason for that but I can't see it.  I suppose it's in keeping with the mindset that since everyone now has access to endless low cost hi-speed internet it doesn't matter cos no one needs to pay attention to those numbers...