I wish the app store was more open
I remember that when the iPhone was first announced, all third-party apps were “web apps”. I do kinda wish this stuck rather than Apple introducing their own walled store, where they decide what enters and what stays.
My main problem is that the web, on iOS devices, is constantly lobotomized by Apple. It makes sense, because they earn money by developers getting their apps on the app store ($99 per year), and they also take a 30% cut of all in-app purchases.
Obviously Apple can do what they want because they created an amazing ecosystem that works great on their devices. But 15 years later, the app store is almost like its own “internet”, and a single corporation gets to choose what gets in.
If you don’t want to pay Apple the $99 to get your app on the app store, your only other option is to make a “progressive web app” (PWA). I really hate the term “PWA” because it’s an ugly acronym that means nothing to users; “web-apps” is a much nicer sounding name. To create a PWA, you need to add a few things to your website that let a user add it to their home screen. If done correctly, when the user launches the PWA that they added to their homescreen, it opens up just like a native app.
But the problem is, have you or anyone you know ever “added a website to your homescreen”? No one knows how to do it because Apple has buried it behind 3 or 4 menus on Safari. On top of that, tons of native features like haptics can’t be used.
Apple’s review process may improve safety and trust, but IMO, that does not justify making web apps second-class citizens. If I were in control, A user would be able to install a web app from Safari with a clear, first-class flow, and that app should have access to privacy-gated APIs similar to native apps. Only when permission is granted, obviously!