If you aren’t aware of progressive web apps, it means you are lagging in time by over 5 years. Yes, progressive web apps were introduced 5 years back. Since then, PWA development is maturing with adequate feature support from Microsoft, Apple, and Google. Also, this has ensured that PWA is just not a passing trend and it is here to stay. This establishes that your brand does need PWA and you should consider investing in the same.

What is PWA?

PWA refers to websites that are packaged into an app. This means that you get to access a great app experience using lesser resources than what is needed for developing native apps. Also, leading brands like Spotify, Instagram, Twitter, etc have adopted it. Further. It helps to cut costs and lead times. The maintenance costs are also low.

Pros of PWA

The progressive apps are very useful for small and medium businesses to make money. The benefits include

Fast development

Converting an already working website or eCommerce shop to a PWA is quite fast and simple. the existing code is good enough for the transformation. Maintaining a single codebase is good enough. Also, there will not be any need to fix bugs in Android or iOS versions

Accessible and affordable

You will be able to let your end-users update the latest versions without visiting the app store for the same. The updates can be shared easily through URL or download. This is because the push updates to the app upload without interference or licenses from the app store.

Effective payment system

Apple Pay support and Google play store are now web-installed PWAs. Therefore, it can be used to make payments in mobile, web, and any service where APIs are available. this makes it an effective payment system.

Uptime even when offline

The PWA’s can work offline too. That is, they can catch data and store it even if the network connection fails. They differ from traditional web apps on this count. This means you can rely on it to browse, send information, and shop reliably.

Load speed

PWAs are smaller when compared to their contemporaries like android apps. However, it helps increase the load speed. According to reports, load speed is one of the metrics that is closely associated with creating user satisfaction and engagement.

HTTPS security

PWAs use the same security measures as those available on the web pages. Https refers to browser to server encryption t. this ensures that the app is as safe as the website.

Cons of PWA

• Shortcomings in device features
• Limited payment options
• Limited iOS features
• Low visibility in the case of OS app stores

Technologies employed in developing PWAs

Angular- It is an open-source web-app framework from Google.

Polymer- Polymer is a template. It is maintained by Google. It is made of components that are designed to use in PWA. You can create a PWA quickly using the template

Ionic- it is a JavaScript framework. Since it is powerful, you can use it for developing apps for several platforms. An ionic app typically uses several web technologies. Therefore, it works seamlessly as a PWA.

React- it is the most popular technology employed for frontend development. It is pre-built, and a fully-functional PWA. However, React is a JavaScript library maintained by Facebook and other developers.

The PWA is here to stay. You will get to see more browser support shortly. The new push from chrome browser enables users to use any website as a PWA. Therefore your brand would need a PWA.