HTML5 Adoption Ramps Up Thanks To Mobile 'Hybrid Apps,' The Easier Alternative To Native

Business Insider

Aug 13, 2013, 21:45 IST

There's a middle ground between HTML5 and native apps. They're called hybrid apps and they fuse the best of both approaches: The cost-effectiveness and flexibility of HTML5, along with the performance, distribution, and monetization advantages of native apps.

In a new report from BI Intelligence, part of our series on HTML5 and mobile, we explain the state of HTML5 and hybrid apps, look at the different development platforms such as Sencha, PhoneGap and Titanium, explore the reasons why hybrid app development has taken off, and discuss how hybrid approaches are shaping the app ecosystem's future.

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Subscribers also gain full access to our HTML5 coverage, data, charts, and PowerPoint presentations, which they can download and use. In-depth reports include, HTML5 vs. Native Apps: Where The Debate Stands Now, And Why It Matters, and our slide deck, HTML5 vs. Native Apps: Head-to-Head.

Here are a few of the reasons why hybrid apps are accelerating HTML5 adoption:

Hybrid approaches are time- and cost-effective: Rather than build an app from the ground up for each mobile platform, developers can write HTML5-based code once and tweak it to redeploy for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, etc.
Hybrid apps are perfect for enterprise and business clients: Many enterprises need to develop scores of apps, including consumer-facing apps, employee apps, even client-targeted apps. Hybrid allows them to scale their app strategy without breaking the bank.
The popularity of hybrid app solutions and services: Going hybrid has been aided by the wide adoption of technologies such as PhoneGap and Appcelerator's Titanium — app builders that wrap HTML5 in a native "container" so that the resulting app can enter popular app stores.
The success of certain hybrid strategies: A case study focused on Untappd, "the FourSquare for beer drinkers" with over 300,000 users, illustrates how hybrid apps have been successfully deployed. Breweries can also plug into Untappd in order to curate information about their brand and products, communicate with consumers, and track feedback. It's all packaged in a graphically attractive interface, and to end users looks and feels like a native app.