Native Apps, HTML Apps, or Hybrid?
You’ve got an idea. You already know you need an app for it. So how do you decide which one to pick? Native app, HTML app, or a hybrid that combines the best of both?
What are Native apps?
Native apps are apps that are developed with native code of the target device. For example, an Android app will be built using Java and an iPhone app will be built using ObjectiveC programming languages.
What are HTML apps?
HTML apps are the newer way of developing apps for mobile devices. It uses the latest innovations with HTML5 (a new way of building web pages) to develop “simulated” apps. These apps are mostly built to live on the internet and require some sort of connections to pull data from the web.
What are Hybrid apps?
Hybrid apps are apps that are primarily built with HTML and JavaScript and get wrapped in a thin native client. In most cases, hybrid apps incorporate the best of both worlds and make it a slightly cheaper and easier method to follow.
Advantages of a Native app
The advantages of a native app are many when it comes to user experience and functionality. These apps are built to use the target device to its full potential. All the features of the mobile device can be used when it comes to native apps. This could be a huge advantage if you’re building something that requires full encryption, for example. Or let’s say you’re building a video game that requires a lot of animation and smooth graphics. This is where you could use the full power of the device with a native app.
What if you need Camera, Notification, or access to Contacts of the phone? Well, this is where you go with a native app.
Advantages of a HTML app
The advantages of a HTML app is when it comes to flexibility, cost, and uniformity. If your app is going to have a constant update of features that must be applied to all devices, then you want to go with HTML app. If you are tight on a budget, you want to go with HTML app. HTML app is also the way to go if you want to have one code to change and update. Another advantage of a HTML app is that the language and tools used to develop it has easier barrier to entry. This means that you can find anyone to take over and develop your project. This is also part of the reason it is a bit cheaper to develop a HTML.
Advantages of a hybrid app
When building a hybrid app, you can pretty much get the best of both worlds. The HTML development allows you to build apps faster and cheaper while the native wrapper exposes the native functionality of the device.
Conclusion
The overall choice for which type of app you should get really depends on what you’re looking for and what you can afford. If you’re looking for something that has access to all the features and capabilities of the target device, you can go with a native app. If you’re trying to work with a smaller budget and are focused on developing once and deploying on all devices, you can go with a HTML app. If you want the best of both worlds, then you can go with a hybrid app. Now, keep in mind that a hybrid app will still have some performance issues. So, if you’re looking for an app that needs high performance, you might still need to go the native route. A hybrid app might also miss some of the native specific design guidelines since they are written to be deployed on all devices at once.
If you have a business you’d like to develop into a website or an app, feel free to reach out to us about your project.