Google Shopping will not be available as an app on mobile devices. However, its Web Version will still be available. The software giant recently confirmed that it is ending support for the Shopping app on Android and iOS. The app will work for a couple of months and then will be completely shut down. Google Shopping was introduced to rival the likes of Amazon where shoppers will be shown links to websites from where they can purchase the products they want.
The shutdown was first spotted by XDA Developers. Gadgets 360 was also not able to download the Google Shopping app from Google Play store on any of our Android smartphones. Google confirmed to 9to5Google, “Within the next few weeks, we’ll no longer be supporting the Shopping app. All of the functionality the app offered users is available on the Shopping tab. We’ll continue building features within the Shopping tab and other Google surfaces, including the Google app, that make it easy for people to discover and shop for the products they love.”
Google Shopping’s mobile app and Web version have a similar interface and experience so it can be understood why Google may want to kill the app altogether. The move comes as Google intends to conserve its engineering resources.
The Home feed on Google Shopping provides users with recommended products that it feels they might be interested in. Saved tab shows products that users have added to their wishlist and Notifications tab shows users updates on orders and promotions. Cart tab directs users to start their purchase process.
Launched in July 2019 for users in the US and in December for users in India, Google Shopping was created to rival Amazon. However, Google doesn’t want to create its own warehouses to stock products, rather it points shoppers to handful of selected retailers like Costco and Target. Later that year, Google added new features like customer care support, price track, local shops stock list, the option to buy directly from Google, among others.
Why did LG give up on its smartphone business? We discussed this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Later (starting at 22:00), we talk about the new co-op RPG shooter Outriders. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.