Notify user within app that a new version is available

Question

I have an android app in the market and I've noticed that it can take quite a while for the app to be updated when I release a new version.

What I was hoping is something like what Google do with their Google Chrome app (may only be the beta version that does it not sure).

What I want to do is when the user launches my app, it can do a check to see if there is a new version available, and if so, just display a small message at the bottom to inform the user that there is a new version available for download. If they click it then the user will be taken straight to the app within the play store so they can commence the update.

How is this done? I've not managed to find anything for android, I've found a couple of things relating to iOS but obviously no good to me.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Answer 1

You can do that with this new Android Official API https://developer.android.com/guide/app-bundle/in-app-updates

Answer 2

There is no API or service by when you can check with Google Play what the latest version of your app is.

Instead, you should maintain the latest version code on your server, and have your app check it periodically against its own version code. If the version code is higher on the server, then your app needs to be updated and you can tell the user accordingly.