Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
1–10 of 139 posts
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#2I believe that mobile browser will beat apps, like it did on desktop. Mobile browsers were unusable, sites were not mobile-friendly, devices were slow with tiny screens. Now those factors change and browsing websites on modern smartphone is much more usable. And it's likely that we will see shift from mobile apps to mobile websites in the near future.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#3I believe that mobile browser will beat apps, like it did on desktop. Mobile browsers were unusable, sites were not mobile-friendly, devices were slow with tiny screens. Now those factors change and browsing websites on modern smartphone is much more usable. And it's likely that we will see shift from mobile apps to mobile websites in the near future.
As a developer and consumer, I think that browsers are better for most use cases, where user interaction is simple enough and web technologies are more than up to the task.
But this technical consideration could be trumped by business considerations: making people pay for "mere websites" is more difficult than making them pay for apps, and if ad blocking really becomes mainstream, this could be enough reason for producers of even simple content to prefer apps - where they can have their free version with ads without having to worry about blockers.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#4I find is to so much easier to just type out the URL of what app I need - facebook, reddit, youtube, etc -
Its just faster to let google auto-complete then having to browse my own phone for the app that I need.
typing the letter "f" is faster than exiting the browser and using my OWN EYES to browse left to right row by row the apps on my phone. How cave-manish.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#5I find is to so much easier to just type out the URL of what app I need - facebook, reddit, youtube, etc - Its just faster to let google auto-complete then having to browse my own phone for the app that I need. typing the letter "f" is faster than exiting the browser and using my OWN EYES to browse left to right row by row the apps on my phone. How cave-manish.
On the iPhone, it's easy to search for an app with a quick swipe down.
As for cavemanish, some might argue "clicking a large icon" is less cavemanish than having to resort to something as unnatural as a keyboard.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#6The difference between web and app is trust.
A website has write access to my screen, my speakers and my internet connection. Plus limited read access. To keyboard, mouse, device orientation etc. Other rights can be granted (location, cookies etc). It can do all this only as long as it's "open".
An app usually has read/write access to large parts of my device. The whole sd-card, raw internet access, the camera, the microphone, ask me for money etc. And it can keep doing so even when it's "closed".
We will see the two converge. Websites will have more rights they can ask for. Apps will be better to tame.
But trust will keep being the differentiator and they will keep co-existing. There is friendship and there is marriage. Both have their use case.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#7I believe that mobile browser will beat apps, like it did on desktop. Mobile browsers were unusable, sites were not mobile-friendly, devices were slow with tiny screens. Now those factors change and browsing websites on modern smartphone is much more usable. And it's likely that we will see shift from mobile apps to mobile websites in the near future.
>like it did on desktop
It's pretty great that this happened. I'm so sick of using these pesky desktop applications. Just remind me, which web apps can I use for the following?
-Audio production
-3D animation
-Video editing
-CAD design
-Writing/debugging software
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#8I find is to so much easier to just type out the URL of what app I need - facebook, reddit, youtube, etc - Its just faster to let google auto-complete then having to browse my own phone for the app that I need. typing the letter "f" is faster than exiting the browser and using my OWN EYES to browse left to right row by row the apps on my phone. How cave-manish.
On the iPhone, it's easy to search for an app with a quick swipe down. As for cavemanish, some might argue "clicking a large icon" is less cavemanish than having to resort to something as unnatural as a keyboard.
The iPhone keyboard famously are not very good. So are older phones.
The newer android phone have amazing responsive. I sometimes use my phone to actually write presentation speech. Something I though I would never do with my older android phones.
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#9I believe that mobile browser will beat apps, like it did on desktop. Mobile browsers were unusable, sites were not mobile-friendly, devices were slow with tiny screens. Now those factors change and browsing websites on modern smartphone is much more usable. And it's likely that we will see shift from mobile apps to mobile websites in the near future.
As a developer and consumer, I think that browsers are better for most use cases, where user interaction is simple enough and web technologies are more than up to the task. But this technical consideration could be trumped by business considerations: making people pay for "mere websites" is more difficult than making them pay for apps, and if ad blocking really becomes mainstream, this could be enough reason for prod…
You know I wonder if in the long term if blocking ads may improve the open web experience vs. native apps which may become cluttered with ads?
Re: Mobile browser traffic is 2X bigger than app traffic, and growing faster
#10For years it has been obvious that the web would beat apps in aggregate, but apps would have better engagement. If you wrap your website in an app using ionic and treat it like a standard site no one will use it. While soneon has noted trust (which is true) it is also fir convenience. The browser is a great app and can run many apps in parralel while quickly shifting between them, it is CONVENIENCE as mych as trust.
If your app does mot extensively make use of the hardware and can be run as a website, it has no business being an app. This is obvious, being proved now, and the app craze will pivot from shit-tier websites in iOS clothing to things that add real value and interface directly with the phones hardware because they need to provide security, access to a protocol, or leverage hatdware (accelerometer, camera, Bluetooth, etc)