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Do not download the app, use the website

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Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#161

Post by dbtc »

andrewstuart2 wrote: post #157
rustystump wrote: post #134

I cannot agree more and this has always been a pet peeve of mine. Most native apps are some half gig large where even the heaviest website is a few mb. They dont let you highlight text and have other bizarre design choices. Even worse, they request importing contacts list which isnt even an option on the web. Native apps could be butter but more often than not they are like margarine. Smooth, oily, and not good for y…

500MB average seems like a gross exaggeration. I agree apps are oversize but I have maybe 2 native apps on mobile that are so large.

Chase Mobile for iOS is 350MB; far from 500, but still baffling why an app would need to be that large just to show me some numbers.

Capital One is 435MB...

Garmin Connect is 518MB for some stupid reason, while Strava is half that and Gaia GPS (great app), is under 100.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#162

Post by AaronAPU »

baby_souffle wrote: post #14
urbandw311er wrote: post #8

Don’t forget the ability to send push notifications. I think that’s one of the main reasons — it turns your whole relationship with a product on its head: you lose control over when you’re engaging, instead they can literally push their services and ads on you.

I have never liked notifications on iOS so I can't say for sure but I do know that on Android it's been possible to disable certain types of notifications or demote the urgency for at least 5 years now. Whether or not most people are aware of this ability is another question, I guess.

I get almost zero notifications on iOS, you can just disable them. There are a couple exceptions but they are high-signal and business purpose.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#163

Post by notyourwork »

johnnyanmac wrote: post #119
charcircuit wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Companies still have to provide value for them to attract users. It's cynical to only look at the value the company gets and ignoring the value users and advertisers get.

I argue that this decade shows you do not have to provide value. You capture the market yester-decade and then you can hold the users hostage as you do any and everything to appeal to shareholders and advertisers. This is indeed a short term strategy, but tech companies right now are thinking very short term.

Agreed, this is post-capture monetization.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#164

Post by radley »

markbao wrote: post #7

Don’t agree, but to each their own. The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version, in my opinion. Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique. Web apps can ask for your location or microphone the same way native apps can. Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either p…

> The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version

I've found it to be the opposite. Perhaps if you're heavily involved on Reddit, LinkedIn, etc., then it's more convenient. But I only go to those sites via a search link. Why would I want to spend time and effort installing the app, just to see the same content I just landed on?

It's a huge red flag when websites push their app so intrusively. It means the app has little value and will be just as bad or worse when you use it.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#165

Post by jjulius »

yownie wrote: post #50
markbao wrote: post #7

Don’t agree, but to each their own. The native app experience for every app noted in the article is better and smoother than the mobile web version, in my opinion. Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique. Web apps can ask for your location or microphone the same way native apps can. Just reject it, there’s nothing that says you have to accept on either p…

it doesn't seem like you even read the relatively short post since: "The native app experience for every app noted in the article" doesn't make any sense, the article lists none. "Lots of people hate Electron apps, which suggests to me that my preference for native apps isn’t unique." again......what does this have to do with the article at all? Aren't you merely reinforcing the articles point? " Just reject it, ther…

>"The native app experience for every app noted in the article" doesn't make any sense, the article lists none.

At the risk of nitpicking, the second paragraph mentions Reddit, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#166

Post by flkiwi »

userbinator wrote: post #148
xxr wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>app icons are just "advertisement" You wouldn't believe the volume of actual advertisements that show up as push notifications on my wife's phone

At least relatively recent versions of Android let you turn off notifications per-app: https://support.google.com/android/answer/9079661?hl=en

Which is nice, but when the offender is, say, a security device that sends event notification but ALSO sends marketing spam, with no granular control over types of notifications, it's not a great situation.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#167

Post by II2II »

charcircuit wrote: post #80
dylan604 wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> No, it's not for you... This is key. Companies pushing apps is not for your benefit. It's so they can further monetize you right under your nose and with your full permission by accepting their EULA. This is just a furtherance of the if you don't pay for the product you are the product.

Companies still have to provide value for them to attract users. It's cynical to only look at the value the company gets and ignoring the value users and advertisers get.

Take Reddit, which is one of the few sites mentioned here that I use. At least initially, the value provided is getting rid of the constant prompts to load the site in the Reddit app. Even though I use old.reddit.com, which doesn't have those prompts, there are times when it redirects me to the new website automatically. Does it offer value beyond getting rid of those messages? Perhaps, but I doubt that it is the type of value that I would be looking for.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#168

Post by paranoidrobot »

The government where I live has a no-interest loan scheme for installing energy efficient appliances. Handy, so I used it to fund heat pumps and insulation.

The scheme is administered by Brighte. I signed up on their website. Everything going well for 6 months or so.

Then out of the blue, an email from them: "We just launched our app". Yeah, no, not interested.

A few weeks later, another "You should use our app, it's so convenient!". No, the website works fine. Can I unsubscribe from these notices? Customer service says no.

A few weeks after that: "Switch to our app. We are removing the website".

I email them to complain: I don't want or need their app, just let me use the website. No,they say, it's definitely being removed. I ask how people who don't want to or can't use their app are supposed to interact with them now? "you can always call us instead".

The idea of removing a perfectly functional website just to force everyone onto an app is insane.

Re: Do not download the app, use the website

#170

Post by nikodunk »

ErrorNoBrain wrote: post #116

I prefer having as few apps as possible so using the web is my go-to i dont have reddit, on my phone for example. Also, all those app icons are just "advertisement" every time you look at your phone screen... i dont need that. if you REQUIRE me to use an app, then i'm only using it if i absolutely have to. (there's almost always an alternative)

I also hate obligatory mobile apps, especially when they’re linked to hardware: At the battery company I work for - pilaenergy - we’re aware that our hardware may well outlive our software, so we’re providing a mobile app that’s accessible over an WiFi access point or over your local WiFi, as well as the traditional mobile apps. This way - the software comes bundled with the hardware and can’t be sunset. Something that has long been an issue with IoT products.
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