
Browsers, not apps, are still the future of mobile - hackyio
https://medium.com/developer-ecosystem/browsers-not-apps-are-still-the-future-of-mobile-e42f661f12eb
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Bucephalus355
I really like native apps, but I think security is eventually going to be a
big driver of many apps turning towards the mobile web or at least some kind
of universal platform (Microsoft with UWP and Oracle with MCS both have this).

The incredible demand for features from customers without a lot of care to
much else other than maybe uptime is going to shift.

People handing over data, wanting to interact with software, etc will be
limited either by shifts in customer sentiment or government mandate. For
instance, perhaps every release of software has to be signed off by the CTO
who is legally liable for the security of the software unless he took
reasonable precautions, similar to environmental law.

Anyway, securing web apps is much easier due to the knowledge we have about
how they should work and the fact that it’s an older, more well known
platform. The RSA conference recently that leaked all of the attendees data
was a stitched together mobile app not surprisingly.

Anyway not sure if it’s going to be a shift one way or the other 100%, but
however it plays out security is going to be a big driving force in platform
choice in ways it hasn’t been previously.

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slow_donkey
I'd love to see actual usage statistics because I don't think this is true
based on my own observations. I myself avoid most apps since they're packed
with analytics libraries but the common user seems to prefer actual apps on
mobile. It's a request my team frequently gets even when our website is fully
optimized for mobile usage.

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crysin
I think it's a trained behavior for a lot of users to default to wanting a
mobile app instead of going to a mobile site because, at least in my
experience, 9 out of 10 times the mobile web experience is flaming garbage and
just infuriates me. I'm not including the sites that create specific pop-ups
to use their mobile app either, like ignoring those I still find most sites
just don't feel good on mobile compared to if they have an app version
available.

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lolsal
I'm not sure it's just trained behavior. There are also things like:

\- permission and privacy controls work better for native apps

\- native apps can run in the background (I'm not familiar with backgrounding
a specific site and letting it work or send notifications).

\- controlled app lifecycle, with a webapp all the latest garbage is always
getting pushed to me. With a native app I can disable automatic updates and
stick with a version (until the underlying API breaks, which is unfortunately
often in my experience).

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kitsunesoba
Also generally speaking, apps are better in that they’re nowhere near as bad
as the web can be when it comes to being intrusive/annoying/demanding, and
oftentimes even ads are better behaved in apps - it’s usually just a single
banner or occasional interstitials, and even then there are limits on how much
they can do automatically (no pinball machine redirect chains and nothing can
force the user to leave the app).

This is because it behooves app devs to ensure that both their apps and any
ads in them are reasonably well behaved, because if they aren’t, the user will
uninstall the app with zero remorse, find a better behaving alternative, and
likely never return. There’s not even a chance of some random link they
encounter bringing them back to the app.

In short, most apps lend users a greater sense of control, whether it’s
actually true or not (I’d say it’s a half truth).

Obviously the fix for this is for browsers to pull in the reigns on what’s
possible in the name of improving user experience, placing native app-like
restrictions on web apps and ad networks. This seems unlikely though, given
how it would probably spur the wrath of many web app devs...

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ThJ
With native apps, it's at least possible to preserve some semblance of privacy
and control over your own data. Granted, most native apps are just thin UI
layers on top of a REST API, but certain things aren't possible to implement
like that without putting sensitive data in the cliud. OTP generators and
password managers, for example. The native app data sandbox offers a level of
security not possible in a webapp.

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SahAssar
I don't get this at all. You seem to allude that the "native app data sandbox"
gives some sort of security or privacy not possible in a webapp, but webapps
are restricted by default, able to run without being installed on your system
and are run in a much stricter sandbox than a native app is.

If you value privacy and security I don't see anything that would favor a
native app over a webapp. I do understand the performance and native
integration arguments for a native app, but saying a native app by definition
offers more privacy or security seems odd.

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craftyguy
'web apps' can be even further restricted by using browser plugins (e.g.
privacy badger, noscript, ublock origin, etc). You don't get that kind of
control with native mobile apps unless you have access to the source code and
can modify/build it.

