2. Web vs. native
The multi-platform mobile app debate
Presented by Gokul Selvaraj
Partner, Apppli
@sgokul
3. Native apps have the lead
• Over 1 million mobile apps have been developed
Over $10 billion generated through direct app sales
• Close to 25 billion native apps downloaded
4. Why has the web lagged?
• Limited capabilities of mobile browsers
Failure of current web standards to cater to mobile
user needs
• All set to change with the adoption of HTML5
5. What do web apps need to
address?
• Functionality
Performance
• User Experience
• Development costs
Monetisation
• Discoverability
6. Feature Gap
• Supported on iOS and Android Specified in HTML5 draft
browsers
• Physical sensors
Offline storage
• Notifications
• Geolocation
• Media Gallery
• Advanced 2D rendering
(Canvas)
• Media Capture
• Multimedia Playback
• Feature Permissions
• Contacts
• Calendar
• System Information
7. Performance: Can web apps ever be as
fast?
• Native code is implicitly faster since it is closer to
machine language
• Web apps can become faster by taking advantage of
these HTML5 features:
• WebWorkers for multi-threaded execution
• Hardware acceleration to speed up rendering
WebGL to improve 3D graphics performance
8. Development costs
• Building a single web app is cheaper than building
multiple native apps.
Web development skill-sets are more readily
available than native skill-sets.
• Maintaining and updating a single code base is
much easier and cheaper.
9. User experience
• Native apps can make use of controls specific to the
OS that users are already familiar with
• Web apps can detect the platform being used by the
user and present a custom CSS that takes advantage
of such platform specific controls
• Over time, the mobile web will evolve its own set of
touch friendly controls
10. Monetisation
• Native apps are easier to monetise
through simple tap to pay
application stores.
• Many monetisation mechanisms are
already available on the desktop
web like subscription, advertising
and affiliate networks.
• Web apps will have the option to not
bear the monopoly fees charged by
native application stores.
11. Discoverability
• Again, native app stores have made discovery very
easy for new users through curated lists, top charts
and user reviews.
On the web, app discovery is possible through
multiple media by the simple process of linking
through a URL.
• Curated distribution mechanisms such as the
Chrome web store are starting to appear on desktop
and can be expected on mobile sometime soon.
12.
13. Hybrid approach
Some glaring gaps with web apps may not make it
worthwhile for developers to invest solely in web
apps today
Hybrid apps: multi-platform HTML5 apps packaged
in a native wrapper
• Fills in for the lacking functionality with native code
Allows distribution and monetisation via native app
stores
• Development costs are low unless heavy
customisation is required for each platform
14.
15. in summary
Native will always be faster at adopting new
technologies
• Hybrid apps are a compromise
• Native is a fast moving target but web is narrowing
the gap.
• The openness and accessibility of the web as a
platform is certain to make web apps popular in the
not-so-distant future
16. Thank you
Download our whitepaper here!
appp.li/html5wp
Presented by Gokul Selvaraj
Partner, Apppli
@sgokul
Editor's Notes
What are native apps how are they different from web apps? What is HTML5 - latest version of a group of standards for structuring and presenting web content
Talk about how native apps have grabbed the minds and pockets of people and the media.
Mainly because of lack of functional capabilities This in turn is because of failure of web standards to cater to mobile user needs- local, offline HTML5 is set to change that because it directly addresses these needs.
Talk about NFC and how it is not included in the HTML5 draft.
Native- runs closer to the metal WebWorkers - for example by uploading a photo in the background while you fill up the rest of the signin form. HW acc- taps into dedicated GPUs available traditionally only to native apps, SVG so you can use same graphic for multiple screen sizes without loss of performance or quality. WebGL- 3D graphics without plugins; plugins like Flash or quicktime have always thought of as adding an additional layer that slows down the experience.
Repeated use of web specific controls will improve familiarity and ease of use.
Native: If your app needs to be on the cutting edge of functionality then staying on native is advisable. Hybrid:good compromise today for businesses that want to have a presence on most mobile app stores without the high costs of developing native apps for each platform. However hybrid apps still struggle to emulate the seamlessness and speed of native apps. Web :Web apps are gaining access to more and more features and capabilities on mobile devices with each passing day. Eventually, they are expected to minimise the gap with the fast moving native platforms. The openness and universal accessibility that have made the web so indispensable on the desktop will also do the same for mobile web apps. Therefore, while we think that native might be the optimal solution in most cases today, our bets are on web apps taking over in the not-so-distant future.
