Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) are a type of app that is delivered through the web. Such apps are not present natively on your device and are mainly designed for mobile use.
But what are the benefits of Progressive Web Apps? And are there any drawbacks?
Here's all you need to know about PWAs.
When you first heard of PWAs, you probably didn't think they would be as good as native apps. But recent innovations are now allowing PWAs to function like your native apps.
Concepts like push notifications and hardware interaction all make PWAs behave similarly to native apps. This means that you get the full benefits of Progressive Web Apps while having them behave like native apps.
Despite the app's behavior as a native app, it takes quite some time to implement new features. This is because those features need to be uploaded to the web. The time delay isn't a big issue for most companies. But it can pose a threat in some instances.
Web apps are made "mobile-first." This is because most web interactions occur on mobile phones. And companies that develop PWAs benefit from optimizing them for mobiles. Many PWAs have worse desktop versions than mobile versions.
And no, this doesn't mean making a few adjustments here and there. Simply cutting and cropping sections of the website isn't sufficient. Developers are now making entirely different experiences for mobile users.
Despite being primarily made for mobile users, there is still a grey area for hardware integration. While on a native app, you can use hardware aspects of your phone, on PWAs, hardware integration is quite difficult.
That's not to say that it's non-existent. Lots of PWAs are capable of interacting with your phone's hardware. This includes the accelerometer, flashlight, and vibration motors.
One of the many benefits of Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) is that they don't require a store. Yes, you do need a web browser to access them. But there is no virtual store like the app store on your phone.
Stories can make updates quite difficult to roll out, as they need to pass certain restrictions. Additionally, stores take around a 30% cut from all proceedings.
Since PWAs are only accessible through web browsers, backward compatibility becomes an issue. While most browsers will support PWAs, older or lesser-known browsers won't. This isn't necessarily a drawback since only a fraction of the consumers will be using those browsers. But some apps that are made for people using older browsers may face compatibility issues.
Another benefit of Progressive Web Apps is that they can work offline, much like any native app. They do this because they cache the pages on your device, allowing you to use the services even when offline.
But most of the offline availability of the web app is intended for emergency purposes. For example, if there's a server breakdown, users can still use the cache.
Caching all of the web pages of a website will require a lot of space. Think of sites like Amazon. With millions of product pages, such sites are near impossible to cache. But smaller sites with less than 10 pages can benefit from this.
Progressive Web Applications (PWAs) are leading the way into a store-free marketplace. But despite the many benefits of Progressive Web Apps, there are equally many drawbacks that need to be remedied. Till then, PWAs will only remain a rising concept that won't see implementation in the next few years.