Help Can't download apps from laptop for some reason

[hstroph]

Android 8.1.0 on a Nexus 6P
I'm logged into my Google account in a Firefox 88.0 browser on a laptop. I can successfully install apps using Google Play on the phone.

In the laptop's browser, I navigate to e.g. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.weather.Weather and choose to install it, but it just recycles through verifying the device and the password, which is correct, without downloading to the phone. Same behaviour for any app I choose.

I prefer to use the laptop as I can read it easier. What might be the problem with loading apps to the phone from the laptop, please?

 

[ocnbrze]

what laptop do you have? is it a chromebook? not all android apps will work on a chromebook, but most will. is your laptop a pc? if it is windows then you need to run an emulator to run android applications.

 

[kate]

What might be the problem with loading apps to the phone from the laptop, please?

So after entering your password to confirm it doesn't give you the pop up saying the app will be installed on your phone?

Firefox is on version 90, you could update to that and try again. Maybe disable ad blockers if you have them, enable trackers if that's disabled. Could also be an error on Googles side.

If changing those settings doesn't work you could browse for apps on your computer, then when you find one you want open Google Play on your phone and quickly install it.

 

[mikedt]

If you have more than one Android device registered to your Google Play, check the apps are been sent to the correct device. Like any phones or tablets you no longer use or have, you may want to delete them from your Google Play.

 

[hstroph]

So after entering your password to confirm it doesn't give you the pop up saying the app will be installed on your phone?

That's correct. When I press the green "Install" button, it displays a Google-logo page with the correct email address, a statement saying "To continue, first verify it’s you" and I enter the correct password for the email address, then a page to select the device Nexus 6P with another green "Install" button, and when I press that, it goes back to "To continue, first verify it’s you" and the recycles the process endlessly. Does "Play" use a different password, perhaps?

Firefox is on version 90, you could update to that and try again. Maybe disable ad blockers if you have them, enable trackers if that's disabled. Could also be an error on Googles side.

Same behavior when ad blocker is completely disabled for the entire site.

I usually upgrade Firefox immediately when notified and did so a couple weeks ago, but it broke and would not display any tabs whatsoever. I submitted the matter to Mozilla's FF forum, but have never received a reply, so I restored from a backup.

If changing those settings doesn't work you could browse for apps on your computer, then when you find one you want open Google Play on your phone and quickly install it.

Yes, thank you, that's what I've been doing. I wish my eyes were able to browse the app selections on the phone more readily. The apps used to get installed on the phone from the laptop, but this is the first time I've tried to install one since the attempted FF update and subsequent backup restoration.

 

[kate]

Does "Play" use a different password, perhaps?

Same password, if you put the wrong password in it will show an error message.

 

[hstroph]

A download of an app to the phone, initiated from the laptop using Google Chrome, works properly.

I made another backup and installed the FF 90.0.2 update, and the same lack of tabs occurs, so in the Chrome browser I follow https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recover-user-data-missing-after-firefox-update

There was one other profile available, so I followed directions and it just opened another 90.0.2 window without saved passwords, or theme, or bookmarks, but with the tabs above the address field; previously I had the tabs below, so maybe that's the problem with the missing tabs.

FF 90.0.2 still exhibits the app-download problem that started this thread, so if I could get it to display tabs then I'd probably keep it, and just download apps from the phone as suggested.

At any rate, the FF 90.0.2 update doesn't work right ... it either preserves my passwords, bookmarks, add-ons etc. but with no tabs visible, or it displays tabs but removes all that's important to me.

<edit>tabs later restored with code from the FF forum. Original problem in this thread persists with FF 90.0.2</edit>

Mozilla really screwed up this one.