Have you tried out BlueStacks? If you’re reading this on a Windows PC, you really should – it’s an impressively simple way to get Android apps onto your full-sized computer, and ever since the software’s beta update, it’s only gotten better. BlueStacks’ success has not gone unnoticed: TechCrunch reports are surfacing that chip maker Qualcomm (you know, the Snapdragon people) has invested in the company after an unusually strong showing this month. The amount of dollars changing hands isn’t clear, but sources say it’s in the millions.

The BlueStacks beta was downloaded a whopping one million times in just ten days after its release – an incredible showing for software that’s still very much experimental. What does Qualcomm, a company whose interests are overwhelmingly mobile, want with BlueStacks? Who knows – maybe it’s the same thing that AMD wants, or any of BlueStacks other investors, now totaling resources of $15 million. The software has already gotten attention from hardware vendors like ViewSonic, and as Windows 8 tablets start appearing later this year or in 2013, the lure of ready-made touch apps may be hard to resist.

BlueStacks is a free download, and anyone can use it to try out a variety of apps synced from their Android smartphone. Even if you don’t use an Android phone, the latest beta includes several third-party app stores for built-in access to hundreds of thousands of apps. If even that isn’t enough and you’re handy with a registry editor, you can try your hand at installing the Google Play Store or rooting the BlueStacks player – yup, there’s nothing that Android modders won’t try. Planned updates to BlueStacks include a premium version and an OS X port.

[via SlashGear]