The number of permutations for testing scenarios across android versions as well as hardware manufacturers is significantly bigger than the number of available

The number of permutations for testing scenarios across android versions as well as hardware manufacturers is significantly bigger than the number of available browsers. The difference between browsers is well documented and as far as I'm concerned finite. How many versions of Android are worth supporting? What about the differences between manufacturers. Browser differences are generally known and well documented. Can you say the same for Android? There are many scenarios where I agree it is significantly harder to create a user experience building a web app that can compare with the native experience. But the premise of the article is that it is cheaper to build on 2 separate native platforms than it is to build web app? The part that gets me is the author complains about things like multiple line ellipses and autocomplete text boxes. Here's a better question - why are multiple line ellipses core to your business? What value does a multiple line ellipse do for the app?