With today’s push by companies to provide mobile 1st experiences for their prospective customers, everyone’s developing native Android & iOS apps. But do you know there’ an alternative now?
Progressive Web Apps (PWA), bring Web apps that are technologically advanced to your home screen & reportedly perform as well or even better than native apps.
PWAs are being touted by Internet users as a “revolutionary new concept” for developers to take advantage of. It merges the power of natively developed apps for the iOS & the Android platforms, with mobile Websites, which function on any smartphone’s browser without having to install anything. In fact over the last few years, the tendency has been for users to install “less” apps.
The PWA concept was postulated in 2015 by Google Chrome developer Alex Russell & freelance designer Frances Berriman to denote a new software development methodology.
A PWA is a hybrid of regular Websites & mobile apps, which can evolve in time & combines features offered by modern browsers with the advantages of a mobile experience.
For it to be considered a PWA, an app needs to be an enhancement of existing Web tech, with no requirement for separate bundling or distribution, as you publish it just like any other Web app.
It does however need to meet the following criteria, according to Alex Russell:
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Originate from a Secure Origin. Served over TLS & green padlock displays (no active mixed Content).
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Load while offline (even if only a custom offline page).
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Reference a Web App Manifest with at least the following properties: name, short_name, start_url, display (with a value of standalone or fullscreen)
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An icon at least 144×144 large in png format
According to Google’s Progressive Web Apps Developer’s page, the main advantages of using PWAs are:
- They load instantly: Service workers allow your apps to load nearly instantly & reliably, no matter what kind of network connection your user is on.
- Apps can be added to home screen: Web app install banners give you the ability to let your users quickly & seamlessly add your Web app to their home screen, making it easy to launch and return to your app.
- Push Notifications: Web push notifications makes it easy to re-engage with users by showing relevant, timely, & contextual notifications, even when the browser is closed.
- They’re fast: Smooth animations, scrolling, & navigations keep the experience silky smooth.
- They’re secure: HTTPS secures the connection between you & your users, ensuring your users information is protected & isn’t tampered with.
- They are responsive: Modern users live on phones, tablets & laptops; your apps & Websites should do the same. You can structure & code your content to look great on screens of any size.
Image Credit: Google
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