Progressive Web App Development: The Most Advantageous Tools for IT in 2020

Progressive Web App Development

As mobile phones’ trend and usage are blooming, they have managed to have a strong foothold in many people’s lives. The idea of convenience with their use is floating very well on everyone’s mind, which has further grown mobile internet usage. There is no need to be anchored to a computer system to access the internet. It’s all on the mobile phone!

All this with increasing competition has led to the need to level up the bar of users’ expectations from websites. 

It could be anything from the loading speed similar to that of light to the seamless browsing experience. And you got to be ready for this!

While mobile applications could be a solution for the same, another significant solution is the PWA (Progressive Web Application), which can be considered a newcomer in web app development. You can give your idea the gift of custom web app development with PWA. It very well caters to the demand for a native experience without installing an app or spending much. 

In this piece of information, we will understand PWA (Progressive Web Application), its advantages, and its tools for development in more detail. 

Let’s get things started!

What is a PWA?

The history says that PWA (Progressive Web Application) development was created by Google in 2015 to keep the user experience the center of attention and interest. A PWA can be described as a website that looks and behaves like a mobile app. They eliminate the need to download or purchase an app with their similar to native mobile device features. They provide enhanced features to deliver a native app-like experience. You can install websites as apps on your mobile device. They are also fast in terms of loading, provide offline accessibility, access to the device camera, microphone, storage, push notifications, background updates, and much more. 

How Advantageous is PWA Development? 

Answering that, Progressive Web App development is highly beneficial. Let’s take a look at some of its key advantages. 

Brand Presence

The PWAs come with URL based design at the core, which makes them quite friendly with the search engines. They are SEO optimized web pages that users can easily find on the internet. This further lessens the marketing efforts. Voice-based searches also improve the exposure to PWAs to users. 

Offline Usability

We can’t disagree about how frustrating it is when there’s an important message on its way to you, but the network issue in an underground train is acting as the barrier. 

However, this is not the scene with PWAs, as they can be accessed offline. During the unavailability of the network or internet connection, the service worker tends to cache the page with previously stored data to allow the user to continue browsing. The reliability of offline accessibility makes PWAs a go-to option. 

Size and Loading Time

Progressive web applications are smaller and lighter in size as compared to native apps. For instance, the average size of an iOS application could be 38Mb, while the Android app could be 15Mb. 

PWAs for this quality take less time to load. Irrespective of the type of connection you have, the sites would load fast, less than a second. 

For example, the Starbuck’s PWA is smaller than its iOS app. It allowed it to double the number of users ordering coffee every day. 

Native Feels

Do you know what your fortress is? 

It’s your home screen!

And with PWAs, the browser would suggest adding it as the native app shortcut to your home screen, just one click away from accessing. 

On clicking the shortcut, you would be able to experience the native, app-like look. Hiring a custom web application development company is an excellent option to give your project the type of Native feel you want. They are experts in their work!

Push notifications

The notifications in PWAs are similar to any native app notifications. They, too, can remind the user to revisit the site even days after they last visited it. This not only maintains communication with the customers but also makes your business/brand an essential part of your user’s life.

Development

The development of Progressive Web Applications is a lot easier as compared to the native apps. With no need for multiple codebases, you just have to focus on the single codebase. 

There is also no necessity of testing and fixing bugs on different platforms like iOS or Android again and again. It can be done once in a while. Adding to it, you don’t have to buy a license to launch. Once your Progressive Web App is ready, you just have to upload it on the server to make it available to users. That’s why PWAs are considered as a cost-effective way to reach masses.

Reading it all, we can surely feel more confident about the benefits of Progressive Web Applications. 

So, now, let’s discover the top tools for Progressive Web Application development in 2020. 

Top Progressive Web App Development Tools in 2020

There are multiple parameters, such as functionality, popularity, documentation, backing, performance, etc. of a specific tool that makes it suitable for your Progressive Web App development. 

Each tool has different capabilities and, thus, diverse offerings. Entering the field with the right tool would accelerate the pace and face of your development process.

Below are some noteworthy Progressive Web Application development tools you must know about. 

React PWA Library

React is a JavaScript library, launched in 2013 by Facebook. It has exceptional backing, documentation, and a robust online community. The additional JavaScript libraries such as NextJS and GatsbyJS helps in creating server-side and client-side rendered pages, API interactions, and routing. It ensures a smooth user experience, with web, progressive or near-native apps. Some famous examples of React PWA library include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Twitter Light.

Angular PWA Framework

Angular is one of the oldest JavaScript frameworks developed by Google in 2010. 

Angular 5 became its first version to support PWA. It helps in creating a PWA using JSON configuration rather than developing an entire app. 

It is also known for its community of developers and regular maintenance by Google. 

Get the type of custom web application development you want for your Progressive Web App with Angular’s impeccable capabilities. 

Vue PWA Framework

Vue can be considered as one of the most popular progressive JavaScript frameworks for PWA development.  

Vue is an open-source framework that is distributed under the MIT license.  

It offers multiple official packages such as server-side rendering, routing, and state management. Another package called Vue CLI 3 makes the progressive web app development easier. 

Ionic PWA Framework

Launched in 2013, Ionic is a framework for hybrid mobile apps along with web apps created using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Its flexible tech stack helps in making use of other frameworks as well for development. 

It offers a library of around 250 pre-built plugins and a rich PWA toolkit with pre-built routing, UI components, and unit tests.

PWA Builder

PWA Builder is the creation of Microsoft. This tool allows converting websites into progressive web apps with minimal effort. 

All you are required to do is enter the URL in the PWA Builder input line, and you are all done.

It is an excellent tool for beginners for progressive app development with minimum investment and effort.

Lighthouse PWA Analytics Tool

Lighthouse, created by Google and available through Chrome DevTools, is an open-source and a great tool for progressive web app development. 

It evaluates the performance, accessibility, progressive enhancements, and search engine optimization levels. 

It provides an evaluation score (a number from 0 to 100) along with the list of failed/passed audits for each factor. It also allows carrying out additional checks manually.

Conclusion 

As this technology of progressive web app development is gaining momentum, more tools are coming up to make it even better. 

Each tool has its own capacity and set of features; you need to consider several significant parameters before deciding which one would suit the most. 

Therefore, adopt the approach for a PWA development with the right web application development services in a thoughtful and planned manner to achieve your goal exactly as you want. 

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