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That is such a nerdy perspective, totally stuck in the filter bubble. I don’t think that explains the difference at all. I think it’s about convenience. People
by arrrg 11y ago
That is such a nerdy perspective, totally stuck in the filter bubble.
I don’t think that explains the difference at all. I think it’s about convenience. People don’t want to use apps for the diverse things they do on the web all the time. Apps may be convenient if you use them frequently (and then only marginally, especially with improving speeds and more people paying attention to making websites usable on phones), but if you use something not so often?
- johnhkg 11y agoI have observed that non-tech people find the App Icons sitting on their home screens to be very convenient to access a service they use, kinda like bookmarks.
- arrrg 11y agoSure, I don't think there is one variable that explains everything. There are a multitude of reasons that lead people to decide to use or not to use apps.
- LoSboccacc 11y agopoeple especially don't need apps of 150mb+ each, and premium phones come with limited storage forcing costly upgrades on top of an hefty price. the only competitive advantage for apps is push notifications, and the sooner browsers and phones can build that into a standard the better (including opening the right page when clicking on a specific service notification)
- jzzskijj 11y agoThe other thing is privacy. I don't want to give every service a "full access" into my phone. At least I have a feeling, that my privacy is in better hands, if I access services using up-to-date mobile browser (or Tinfoil for Facebook) instead of a native app running on my phone. Looking at the ridiculous number of permissions different apps would require to run on my (Android) phone, using mobile site of the most of the services seems safer choice. Android 6.0 may change this with switchable permissions, tho.
- andrepd 11y agoI remember having switchable permissions since 4.3. Did something change in the meantime?
- LoSboccacc 11y agoyou are right about privacy, but if you follow the thread the parent already makes a good point of user already having been desensitized about app security permission by them being confusing and only really understood by few I agree that the current browsers represent an exceptionally good model to run remote applications securely, far better than the app store / play store 'sandbox' and 'vetting processes' model, since has been used since forever and tested again loads of different attack vectors. but I don't know if this is the reason for non nerds not to use native apps
- jeromenerf 11y agoOffline storage is a great competitive advantage for apps.
- LoSboccacc 11y agouhm while WebSQL and IndexDB aren't mature enough, wrapping libraries that grant some cross platform offline storage do exist and are only getting better
- davnicwil 11y ago> the only competitive advantage for apps is push notifications Don't know about that. What about UX? It's pretty well accepted now that the native controls in apps provide a much less frustrating UX than all but the most meticulously designed web apps, which is a very low percentage right at the top. That's just talking about controls, that's not even to mention the clunkiness of the browser itself (address bar popping up over content, popups offering to remember passwords, all that kind of stuff that detracts from your tailored experience) and to an extent the navigation model (typing in a url rather than tapping an icon for instantaneous checking of a service). Simple stuff like this really matters to the majority of people. For technically-minded people, we're not as distracted or put off by this 'minor' stuff because we understand the trade offs, reasons for it, depth of it and even how to work around it. Most people don't, they just (probably rightly based on evidence) trust apps to deliver a better and more tailored UX and that's it, that's what they like and want more of. Don't get me wrong, I love the web, for probably much the same reasons you do. One advantage it definitely has is the ability to avoid downloading apps in the first place. But its competitive disadvantages vs native apps go way beyond push notifications. There's are a lot of things so deeply baked in to the web and browsers that apps do so much better that it will take (software) generations to 'fix', if at all. Unfortunately for the web, as seen in the last five years or so, these are disadvantages that really, really matter to the majority of people who actually use services. Much more so than the higher level, arguably 'more important' things like security, privacy, storage space, etc that us techies tend to prioritise.
- LoSboccacc 11y agoaddress bar popping up over content [true] popups offering to remember passwords [solved] typing in a url rather than tapping an icon [solved] we're not that far from a good user experience. even the bar problem is only ios specific, android browsers have a better support for full screen apps
- 49531 11y agoI don't think it's a totally unique perspective, but perhaps the average smart phone user would use different terms. If you look at apps as always having new updates, and always using up precious phone storage space you begin to feel like these apps are cumbersome. It might not be what they call trust, but it is a negative experience regardless.
- tempestn 11y agoI agree with your point. Do you think it could have been phrased differently though, since some people might take offense at their perspective (and by implication, them) being called nerdy? (Obviously not the most dire of insults, and not an insult at all to many people - yourself included, probably - but still probably unpleasant to some.)
- catshirt 11y agoif someone here is offended by this use of the word nerdy, they are completely unaware of themselves. it's 2015 man, we took the word back. nerdy is cool.
- reitanqild 11y agoI'm one of the people who could have been insulyed and I say please STOP. Stop this nonsense where we cannot even describe anything.
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- catshirt 11y agothank you. it is definitely a difference, but to act like this is the reason for these numbers is so misguided. "I use mobile web because apps have too much control" - no normal person ever
- davemel37 11y agoYou are partially right. It is about convenience, but it is really about the convenience of search and the proliferation of voice search. I don't even know anymore what apps I have on my phone. I simply search and let Google search my phone and the internet at the same time and I click on the most convenient result.