[EN] Progressive Web App (PWA) — The Next Generation of Applications

Do you want to provide an application for your users? Today, you have several possibilities. The first one is to develop an APP accessible from the blinds, but now you also have the choice to create an APP that can be installed in one click without downloading: a PWA (Progressive Web App)! The Unikname team has chosen the second one by offering the experience of a PWA to its users. What does it consist of? What are the advantages? What is the difference between a native application and a PWA? We explain everything in this article!

Unikname offers a decentralized robust authentication solution that is very easy to use, and ABOVE all fully respects users’ privacy. Its use is based on an application available on smartphones or tablets. But don’t try to download this application on traditional application stores (App Store for iOS, Google Play for Android); you won’t find it! The reason for this? Unikname preferred to opt for a Progressive Web App (PWA), goodbye download, and welcome simplicity of installation thanks to the QR Code or a clickable link (your choice).

At first glance, it may seem confusing not to have to go through the blinds, but the user experience is much better! Whether your user is on the desktop or a smartphone, he doesn’t leave the navigation universe of your website or your Landing Page, and most importantly, he doesn’t have to go back to the store.

PWA… no more downloading from an APP Store, but a simple installation from a QR Code or a clickable link.

The result of the installation is the same as for a download; you will find the APP icon on your smartphone’s desktop.

The My Unikname icon between Brave and ProtonMail, on my Android device

If the user wants to install the APP from his Desktop, he can receive the installation link by SMS or scan it directly from his Smartphone’s camera.

For the most privacy-conscious users, they just need to open a browser (Brave, Chrome, Safari…) in their mobile and go directly to the installation URL to discover the PWA my.unikname.app. Now let’s see what precisely a PWA is and the advantages it represents.

What is a Progressive Web App?

Starbucks, Housing.com, Flipboard, Pinterest: each of these applications have something in common with Unikname. These are companies that have chosen PWA technology for their App.

The Progressive Web App is first and foremost an App, but developed with classic web technologies. A PWA is then an alternative to the traditional development of a mobile application.

It runs within the mobile’s browser, like all web applications, but the user rendering is that of a classic APP, i.e., the browser disappears, and the APP occupies the entire screen.

The PWA runs in the browser of your cell phone… but the user experience is that of a classic APP.

Although PWA runs within the browser, it offers some exciting features to developers to maximize user experience, such as service workers that allow them to manage the offline mode like a classic APP.

What is the point of a PWA if the operation is finally very close to that of a classic mobile APP? Why is this technology considered as the future of mobile applications?

What are the main advantages of a PWA?

Independence from blinds

Going through a Progressive Web App, as Unikname has done, rather than through traditional mobile development, means you don’t have to meet the criteria required to appear in the Blinds. A subject that will undoubtedly remind video game enthusiasts of the duel between Apple and Epic Games is due to the withdrawal of the Fortnite game from the Apple Store because it no longer complied with Apple’s rules.

It also avoids being exposed to APP Ranking, which is unsuitable for certain types of applications.

With PWAs, the entire WEB becomes a giant Store, independent of the Smartphone’s operating system.

• Applications become “alive,” i.e., they are regularly enriched with new functionalities. The store and update process on smartphones is restrictive, depriving many users of the latest features, and the Ranking that often corresponds to earlier versions no longer becomes relevant.
• The web is a great marketing tool and offers App creators a maximum of possibilities to promote their solution and convince their users: landing page, conversion tunnel, promotional videos. The Blinds, saturated with Apps, whose Ranking becomes the only way to find their way around, deprives users of discovering certain nuggets that would be very useful.

Applications always up to date… in the background

PWAs offer another great advantage for both users and publishers, as users always have the latest versions without re-downloading new updates.

PWAs are updated in the background, allowing editors to “push” bug fixes or even security holes quickly, without user action.

The considerable gain in iteration speed and deployment speed

The development of a PWA is indeed faster and cheaper than for a native mobile application. Once the Factory software is configured correctly, developers will work with their favorite web programming language and deploy their software in a flash on all operating systems at once. PWA technology is, therefore, ideal for startups:

• to quickly bring a solution to market
• to iterate regularly
• to simultaneously address the iOS need, Android, or even Windows now (and yes, PWAs work under W10)
• to find developers more easily

By deploying the application on a simple web server, saving time is substantial, like any other website.

Takes up less space on Smartphones

Users who have more and more smartphones saturated by Apps that consume a lot of memory will yet be able to breathe :

• installation time is reduced, and the pages of a PWA are easily accessible offline ;
• the PWA is, of course responsive, and adapts to the device you are on. Whatever your smartphone or tablet, you will benefit from the same Unikname browsing experience;
• the PWA takes up less memory space on the device

To conclude

Unikname has chosen to develop its application by exploiting the potential of PWA technology. This explains why the Unikname application is not available on the usual blinds but is simply installed from your web browser.

PWAs are a new generation of applications that offer many advantages for both users and developers/publishers and are increasingly being embraced by the major players on the web.

If you want to test the experience, install the application from your web browser, acquire your universal identifier, your Unikname, and use it to log in to our forum.