It's that time again - Google has pushed out an update to the Play Store with plenty of enticing new features. We've got the APK, so after a brief rundown of some of the more notable features (we'll scour the APK in the coming days for any hidden goodies), we'll give you a link to download the app for yourself.

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What's New?

One of the most exciting features packed into the 4.5.10 update is an indicator for in-app purchases. This seems to be more of a binary yes-or-no indicator (it won't give you insight into cost or quantity of IAPs), but it's great to see some kind of indication of whether the app you're about to download will be asking you to make further transactions.

The update also brings some tweaks to the review process and its related layouts. First, the Play Store's got a new layout for viewing your own review, and a large five-star selector if you've yet to rate an app. There's also an explicit "Edit" button, which should make the ability to edit your review a little more obvious.

Unlike previous versions of the Play Store, 4.5.10 allows users to delete their reviews as well. Oh, and the stars have been changed too - they're now green, sans outline, and a bit sharper. Update: We didn't catch this originally, but it turns out the stars are colored according to what category they belong to - Books has blue stars, Movies & TV has red stars, etc. Thanks Nicholas for pointing this out!

Across all reviews (your own included), avatar images are now encapsulated in circles rather than squares. This is a small touch, but brings the app a little closer to its web counterpart.

Elsewhere, some information and typography (related to devices, users' names, and versions) have been adjusted. Check out the comparison images below - on the left is 4.4.22, on the right is the new version.

Another addition to the Play Store is an activity feed. Essentially, the Play Store will now allow you to view and share a stream of your Play Store activity with others, all connected to your Google+ profile. This feed will show your +1s, ratings, etc. and allow you to click through to G+ profiles as well.

The Play Store is also a bit more forward in providing recommendations and encouraging users to rate items, offering up items with huge star selectors to enhance the store's suggestions for future content. To further aid you in discovering new apps or games that you'll like, the Play Store will include items rated by your G+ contacts, and will float those contacts' reviews to the top in individual listings.

File Size History

  • com.android.vending-4.0.27.apk 5.89 MB (6,181,458 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.1.6.apk 5.75 MB (6,036,474 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.1.10.apk 5.76 MB (6,040,792 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.2.3.apk 5.76 MB (6,046,580 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.2.9.apk 5.84 MB (6,129,144 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.3.10.apk 5.75 MB (6,036,657 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.3.11.apk 5.75 MB (6,038,575 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.4.21.apk 5.84 MB (6,126,172 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.4.22.apk 5.84 MB (6,126,834 bytes)
  • com.android.vending-4.5.10.apk 6.62 MB (6,951,714 bytes)

Download

The APK is signed by Google and upgrades your existing Play Store. The cryptographic signature guarantees that the file is safe to install and was not tampered with in any way. Rather than wait for Google to push this download to your devices, which can take weeks, download and install it just like any other APK and enjoy the new Play Store experience.

Thanks Santiago Rosales, and thanks to Joseph Bellone for the APK!