Re:Goodbye, Native Mobile Apps
by amirmansour on Friday September 25, 2015 @02:17AM
(#10276632)
I agree with you, but I must also add that not every site needs to have an app. Mobile web is plenty appropriate and sufficient for many types of apps. Many news and blog sites are a great example of this. In their case, an installable app would make sense if they are offering a feature or experience that requires the privileges of an app. Lets not unnecessarily crowd up our phones and app stores. The World Wide Web is still a good idea.
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Techmeme is a prime example of this — bookmark it on your homescreen and it's as good as an app. Their mobile design is, IMO, easier to parse than the web, too.
Financial Times does not have an iOS app - just a mobile website. They have been very clever in building the site so that it is very app-like, for instance they use local storage to store the days download stories.
But, was initially confusing because I couldn't find their app in the app store, where I was expecting it.
But, was initially confusing because I couldn't find their app in the app store, where I was expecting it.
In my experience this is a huge problem. Along with the process of adding to home screen - people just don't get it. Once they have it installed they're very happy, but getting them to that point is difficult.