May 10, 2021
The first choice you must make when building a cross-platform application is: should it be developed as a progressive web app, hybrid, or native mobile app. All these solutions have their merits and flaws, but don’t worry – we are here to walk you through it and advise on what to consider when making that decision. Let’s start with better defining our options.
A cross-platform app is an application that works on multiple platforms, such as Android, iOS, or Windows. This can be achieved in various ways:
Going native means that your team gets to take full advantage of every feature a platform offers. On the other hand, you will need a separate team to build a distinct code in another programming language for each platform.
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The apps that come pre-installed with a new device, like Calculator, Contacts, File Manager, or Notes, are typically native. Some games (like Pokemon Go) and other animation-heavy apps are built natively as well.
This combination of a web app codebase with a native shell is much cheaper and faster to develop than building a separate app for every platform, but web technologies you’ll be using have their limitations.
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One of Google’s most popular services – Gmail – is a hybrid app and a great example of how an HTML5 web app can run smoothly as a mobile app thanks to its native shell. Now, with the integration of Meet, the app supports even more ways of communication.
Progressive web apps (PWA) are in many ways similar to hybrid apps: both connect the web and native development, but in slightly different ways. Although some of them are available in iOS Appstore and Google Play Store, these apps can often be saved directly from a website. When the PWA is installable, after going to its page in any modern mobile browser, you’ll be prompted to add the app to your home screen (which will create a shortcut directly to this app). Some desktop browsers (like Chrome) also support PWA install experience. PWAs use progressive enhancement to deliver high-end effects that are enabled within all contemporary browsers. On the other hand, they will typically work on older browsers with limited capabilities as well.
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PWAs are commonly used as e-commerce solutions (Flipkart, Eleganza, and AliExpress come to mind) but probably the best known PWA to date is Twitter Lite. The app is fast, lightweight, and responsive, while still supporting notifications and offline use.
As you could see, every approach is different and offers different possibilities. But all projects also have their requirements, so the answer to the question of which is better – native, hybrid, or progressive web app – will always lay in on the crossroads of those possibilities and requirements.
But the basic rules you should remember after reading this piece are simple.
That’s why at Monterail, we always start by thoroughly examining all the needs of a prospective project and then advise on the best choices for that particular idea, including what kind of app it should be (PWA vs hybrid vs native), and what kind of team should develop it. You too can develop your cross-platform mobile apps with us.
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