A new Play Store bug is inflicting repeat app updates for same versions

An odd bug on 26th April sees the Google Play Store prompt users re-download Android app updates that they have already installed on their devices.

Those visiting the “My apps & games” section of the Play Store on Sunday evening/early Monday morning would possibly notice that many updates area unit offered. Most are for first-party Google apps, as well as YouTube TV, Gmail, Wear OS, Slides, Google Docs, Sheets Tasks Phone, Fit, and Files. Some third-party developers may also appear.

That number of recent updates on a weekend is in itself odd — expulsion some important patch. If you compare the version noted on the Google Play listing with your device’s App information page before downloading, you’ll notice that they’re identical. Some are from the last week, whereas others happen to be months-old.

Tapping ‘Update’ can really download the unfinished version — as proved by the large Drive family of applications. However, others are lightning-fast and immediately jump to “Installing.” The installs can proceed to appear under the “Recently updated” list. Once you “updated” an application, it’ll not seem within the queue.

Another twist to the present issue is, however, closing Google Play from the ‘Recents’ multitasking menu can cause a number of those ‘updates’ to disappear, and new ones to show up.

This peculiar bug seems to be widespread, in step with user reports and what we consistently encountered on many of our devices. Installing an app version you have already got on your device is harmless, therefore there’s no real issue. That said, those with constrained net caps can be miffed at the unnecessary data usage.