570-983-0575It seems everywhere I look or listen someone is using or talking about a new mobile app they just downloaded for their iPhone. Apps continue to grow at an astounding rate but will it continue especially with HTML5 maturing and tools like Sencha Touch becoming better each day?
Sencha Touch, a Mobile JavaScript Framework, allows developers to create mobile web apps that look and feel native on iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry touch devices. It is the first of its kind to support HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript. Even more impressive, the library is under 120kb! It supports enhanced touch events just like a native app like tapping, double tapping, swiping, tap and hold, pinching, and rotating.
Since it is a cross-platform framework, it works with Apple iOS 3+, Android 2.1+, and BlackBerry 6+ devices. That has to be well over 90% of the US mobile traffic at this point. With a framework like this maturing, why would developers and for that sake, companies looking to maybe have a mobile app made, want to shell out a ton of money for something that would essentially have to be created at least 2, maybe even 3 times?
I think as mobile platforms become more and more fragmented, we’ll only see more developers and publishers turning back to the mobile web. Developing once and deploying across a wide range of devices seems to be an easy choice to me. Don’t get me wrong, mobile web experiences are still lagging behind native apps, but with frameworks like Sencha Touch popping up, I think we may see a turn away from a mobile app for everything.
Take Sencha Touch for a ride:
Try in full screen for the full effect.
*Keep in mind this is an iframe, so it isn’t anywhere near perfect but click and drag and move around. It will also only work correctly with a Webkit browser like Safari or Chrome.
