A light bulb goes off. You have the next great idea for a mobile app that you want to develop. It’ll change lives. It’ll make you millions. So what’s your next step?
One of the things you’ll need to decide early on in your mobile application development process is how you’ll build and deploy your app. There are two main directions you can go: native app or mobile web app.
Companies like eBay and Amazon are bringing in billions of dollars a year from their mobile apps and mobile commerce sites. Marketing firm Performics reported that 49% of “heavy mobile web users” have made a purchase using a mobile device.
For merchants, it’s no longer enough to have an ecommerce strategy — businesses need to embrace a mobile commerce strategy as well. For most businesses, that means making a choice of creating an optimized mobile commerce website or a native mobile application. In this article, we’ll talk about the differences between the two and tell you why Rheti makes the debate of Native Mobile Apps vs Mobile app obsolete with its smart phone app builder that enables anyone to build a true native app within minutes and without writing any code.
Native App vs. Mobile Web App: Definition
First, let’s define what we mean in this article when we say “native app” and “mobile web app”.
What is a Native App?
A native app is an application that is installed directly onto the device and has the ability to use many of the phone’s hardware components including NFC, camera, etc… Users typically acquire these apps through an online store or marketplace such as The App Store or Android Apps on Google Play. Examples of native apps are Camera+ for iOS devices and KeePassDroid for Android devices. Rheti, for example, is a native phone application.
What is a Mobile Web App?
When we talk about mobile web apps in this article, we’re referring to Internet-enabled apps that have specific functionality for mobile devices. They’re accessed through the mobile device’s web browser (i.e. on the iPhone, this is Safari by default) and they don’t need to be downloaded and installed on the device. Think of these as websites only.
Comparison of Native App vs. Mobile Web App
Let’s do a quick rundown and evaluate native apps versus mobile web apps under these factors:
- User interface
- Development
- Capabilities
- Monetization
- Method of delivery
- Versioning of the app
- Strengths
- Weaknesses
Choosing Between Mobile and Native Apps
One of the resounding themes for mobile software developers in 2011 was the debate between building a native app or building a mobile web app. While some developers are looking at ways to build hybrid solutions, this is a topic that continues to generate intense debate between programmers. This is especially true for mobile commerce sites, where the conversion rates between browsers and purchasers can vary dramatically based on the platform and the method of presentation.
David Eads, the vice president of product marketing at Kony Solutions recently wrote an article for Mobile Commerce assessing the mobile channels brands need to support. Eads makes the argument that it is “critical” for brands to seek to support as many mobile devices as possible. That said, deciding how to allocate resources can be difficult.
User Interface
Some companies choose to develop both a native app and a mobile web app. Here’s a side-by-side look at Facebook’s native app and mobile web app:
Notice that, in terms of the general look-and-feel, there’s little difference between the two, making for a consistent user experience.
Development
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Each mobile application development platform (e.g. iOS, Android) requires its own development process | Runs in the mobile device’s web browser and each may have its own features and quirks |
| Each mobile application development platform has its own native programming language: Android-specific, IOS specific, etc. | Mobile web apps are written in HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript and server-side languages or web application frameworks of the developer’s choice (e.g. PHP, Rails, Python) |
| Standardized software development kits (SDKs), development tools and common user interface elements (buttons, text input fields, etc.) are often provided by the manufacturer of the platform | |
| There are tools and frameworks to help in developing apps for deployment on multiple mobile OS platforms and web browsers (e.g. Rheti, PhoneGap, Sencha Touch 2, Titanium, etc.) |
Capabilities
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Can interface with the device’s native features, information and hardware (camera, accelerometer, NFC, etc.) | Mobile web apps can access a limited amount of the device’s native features and information (orientation, geolocation, media) |
Monetization
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Mobile-specific ad platforms such as AdMob (though there can be restrictions set by the mobile device’s manufacturer) | Mobile web apps can monetize through site advertisement and subscription fees |
| Developers have the ability to charge a download price and app stores will typically handle the payment process (in exchange for a percentage of sales) | Charging users to use the mobile web app requires you to set up your own paywall or subscription-based system. Many choose to charge subscriptions rather than one-time downloads |
Method of Delivery
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Downloaded onto a mobile device | Accessed through a mobile device’s web browser |
| Installed and runs as a standalone application (no web browser needed) | No need to install new software |
| Users must manually download and install app updates | Updates are made to the web server |
| There are stores and marketplaces to help users find your app |
Versioning of the App
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Some users may choose to ignore an update, resulting in different users running different versions of the app | All users are on the same version |
Strengths
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Typically perform faster than mobile web apps. | |
| App stores and marketplaces help users find native apps | Users don’t have to go to a store or marketplace, download the app and install the app |
| Best possible user experience and access to native phone capabilities. | Can be released in any form and any time as there isn’t an app store that has to approve the app |
| Tools, support and standard development best practices provided by device manufacturers can help speed up development |
Weaknesses
|
Native Apps |
Mobile Web Apps |
| Used to be more expensive to develop, especially if you’re supporting multiple mobile devices. Rheti makes creating a native app incredibly inexpensive though | Mobile web apps can’t access all of the device’s features |
| Supporting multiple platforms requires maintaining multiple code bases and can result in higher costs in development, maintenance, pushing out updates, etc. | Supporting multiple mobile web browsers can result in higher costs in development and maintenance, etc. |
| Users can be on different versions and can make your app harder to maintain and provide support for | Apps could render differently on different devices and mobile browsers |
| App store approval processes can delay the launch of the app or prevent the release of the app | For users, it may be harder to find a mobile web app because of the lack of a centralized app store (though listings do exist such as Apple’s Web apps and you can request to be listed in them) |
Apps or Mobile Web: Conversion Rate is Platform Dependent
Although comScore’s MobileLens report ending in November 2010 indicates that nearly twice as many smartphone users accessed online retail via a website rather than a native app, that only tells part of the story. David Eads reports that Kony Solutions sees 30% higher conversion rates for native iPhone apps versus typical mobile websites.
In other words, it isn’t just about choosing native apps or choosing the mobile web — it’s also about looking at who your customers are and what devices they use. For retailers that have lots of iPhone users, the fact that 50% of users can come from a native app and the conversion rate can be 30% higher makes a strong argument for creating a native app. Meanwhile, if conversion rates for native BlackBerry apps are subpar, it might make more sense to focus on optimizing the mobile commerce site to work with the BlackBerry browser.
Optimize for the Device: Speed Counts
Just like with standard ecommerce sites, speed and experience can make a huge difference in the effectiveness of a mobile commerce website or native application. In these cases, it is best to build a native application. Sites that are slow to load — even by just a second or two — can often lead to users forgoing the transaction altogether. Mobile websites that aren’t optimized for touch or for larger screens can make customers confused, and again, unlikely to purchase.
In its Keynote Mobile Commerce Performance Index, Internet Retailer ranks mobile commerce websites based on load time, success rate and other factors. It noted last week that the recently revamped Buy.com m-commerce site moved the retailer up seven places in its index from the previous week.
Interestingly, the #1 mobile commerce site on Internet Retailer‘s index, Walgreens, is nearly identical in appearance to its native iPhone app.
Native App vs. Mobile Web App: How Do You Choose?
Prior to Rheti’s launch, you would typically have ask yourself these questions to decide on the app:
- Does the mobile app require the use of any special device features (i.e., camera, the camera’s flash, accelerometer, etc.)?
- What’s my budget?
- Does the mobile app need to be Internet-enabled?
- Do I need to target all mobile devices or just certain devices?
- How important is speed and performance?
- How will this app be monetized effectively?
As Rheti enables you to build a native mobile application for free, users can now dismiss their budget constraints. Likewise, monetization techniques, coupled with features and native phone capabilities, can be easily added and maintained; therefore making your app-building experience incredibly easy and profitable in the near future.
In this debate of native app vs mobile web app, there is a clear winner in user experience which will ultimately lead to your users spending time with your brand. Building apps with Rheti’s app to build apps will enable you to take advantage of all of the benefits of a native app without any of the headaches of creating, budgeting, and maintaining your native application.
