Google says Progressive Web Apps are the future of the mobile web

In its eBook, Google muses on the rise of PWAs, noting that over the last few years, mobile devices have become more prevalent than desktops when it comes to getting online with twice as much time spent on the mobile web. In some areas of the world, such as the Asia-Pacific region, a number of countries access the internet exclusively from a mobile device.

Most consumers, will turn to the web to find something they are looking for says Google, but there is also an overriding belief that apps tend to be much easier to use – the search engine suggests that is because apps are built specifically for mobile devices, so the user experience, design and navigation is wholly tailored to smartphone screens and tablets. They are more streamlined than a website, consumers think of them as being more personalised and the checkout experience is often much slicker.

Google heralds PWAs as bringing the best of both worlds together and notes in the eBook that, “ Progressive Web Apps (PWA) are websites that use modern web technologies to create mobile web experiences that are closer to those delivered by native apps. Via a link on the homescreen, users can enjoy features that were previously challenging on the web: accessing content offline, receiving notifications from preferred brands, adding favorites to the homescreen. PWAs help improve user engagement and enable seamless conversions - whether for e-commerce, productivity, publishing, games, or media… PWAs enable frictionless journeys for mobile, tablet, and desktop users, and so regardless of the platform, they have a key role to play.”

Of course, this means that PWAs are incredibly exicting developments, with lots of potential for the years ahead, something Google is clearly already thinking about.

For app developers keen to leverage this trend, the search engine says a good PWA must be built on a trio of requirements. It should be:

·Fast

·Installable

·And follow best practise user experience and user friendly design principles to make it engaging