Revealing the Truth About PWAs: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly!
Compare the pros and cons to decide if a PWA is the best way to serve your clients.
Mobile apps are becoming more and more popular.
According to a Top Design Companies poll from 2022, 48 percent of smaller companies had a mobile app to engage with their consumers, and 27 percent wanted to build one soon.
Companies must, however, decide whether to create a native app or a progressive web app (PWA).
Table of contents:
- The Advantages of Progressive Web Apps
- PWA Examples
- What Are the Negative Effects of PWAs?
- What is the best way to take action?
The Advantages of Progressive Web Apps
PWAs work similarly to native applications, but instead of needing a user to download them from an app store, they work directly from a web browser, using less memory on a smartphone.
Pre-caching maintains the app up to date so that the most recent version is available when the user starts it.
However, in addition to benefits for buyers, PWAs offer advantages for developers:
- They are built with web technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, which many developers have worked with, as compared to collecting a team to produce iOS apps, that need special resources.
- PWAs are created from a single code base that can be used on any device.
- To reduce development time and money, developers can use web plugins to create PWAs.
- In contrast to native apps, which require extra security measures such as multifactor authentication (MFA), HTTPS can be used to guarantee safe data sharing.
- PWAs run “offline-first,” using cached material before contacting the server.
- It is possible to create seamless offline experiences using service worker APIs.
PWA Examples
PWAs are web apps that offer users an app-like experience.
They are meant to be quick, dependable, and responsive, and can be accessed from any device, including smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers.
Here are some great PWA examples:
Starbucks
Starbucks created a PWA for online ordering in addition to its known mobile apps.
It is available without a network connection and has helped the company exceedingly double its online orders, with desktop users now almost equaling mobile users.
Uber
Uber’s PWA got a quick first-page load, and the transition between pages is responsive, allowing for quick and efficient interactions.
The light-in-weight PWA is compatible with any current browser and offers an enjoyable user interface even for users on low-end devices.
Trivago
Trivago’s PWA has been optimized for mobile devices and offers users a smooth booking experience.
It loads very quickly and offers push notifications to keep users up to date on their bookings.
Pinterest’s PWA reduced the size of the app’s core bundle from 650KB to 150KB while also reducing the time to interaction from 20 seconds to 5.6 seconds.
The Washington Post
The Washington Post’s PWA gives an instant and engaging user experience, featuring offline reading and push notifications.
It also uses caching to boost load speeds and reduce data usage.
AliExpress
With features like push notifications and offline compatibility, AliExpress’ PWA offers a lightning-fast user experience.
It also uses caching to boost load speeds and reduce data usage.
Overall, these examples show how PWAs can offer users an app-like experience while offering the benefits of more quick load times, offline compatibility, and lower data use.
What Are the Negative Effects of PWAs?
Even while the list of PWA benefits is long enough there are some limitations.
They might, for example, have functional limitations on specific operating systems, especially iOS.
Also, they are unable to use full gadget features, which could restrict access to NFC, Bluetooth, proximity sensors, camera controls, or geofencing.
They can also quickly drain battery power.
Another disadvantage is that they are not available in an app store.
As a result, app developers miss out on a marketing chance to boost popularity and show their apps.
What is the best way to take action?
If a company already has a native app and would like a PWA, it’s a good idea to convince them to have both.
With this strategy, the native app can continue to give the experiences users have come to expect, while the PWA could offer interactions through the app to a new sector of people who might need to use a browser.
A company creating its first app, on the other hand, might think about just a PWA if the app doesn’t depend on device functionality or is functional with all iOS devices.
App developers could also search for chances to create PWAs for companies to use internally, such as for utility, mining, or construction workers.
These users can gain offline capabilities via pre-caching, and with the company controlling the devices that employees use, the app can be specific to work preferably with them.
The concept of developing web applications is less than two decades old, but these lightweight programs that load quickly, run offline, and have cheap development costs are gaining popularity.
Compare your business to see if creating PWAs is a good idea for you and your client base.
Exit with a flourish — a $1 coffee confirms the creative expedition continues!
