Mobile vs Web vs Desktop: Which Application Development Is Right for You?
Creating a digital business can be beneficial for your brand’s online presence, but deciding whether a web application, mobile app, or desktop application is the right choice can be challenging. Many businesses require help choosing the right medium for their online presence. Companies often begin with a desktop website, modify it for mobile use, and then develop a mobile application. But which should you start with? Sometimes a web application is sufficient to spread brand awareness, engage users, and fulfil your business objectives through sales. This article will showcase application development services and the distinctions between mobile, web, and desktop apps, and help you make the decision that is best suited to accomplish your company’s objectives.
What is a mobile app?
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Mobile applications, often just referred to as native apps, are functional only on mobile devices. Providing enhanced functionality and seamless and optimized user experience, mobile apps access various functions of mobile platforms, such as the camera and microphone. Designed mainly for phones, they provide a significantly better user experience than a mobile website.
Device features mobile app uses:
- Bluetooth
- Accelerometer
- Push notifications
- In-app calls
- NFC
- Camera
- GPS
- Augmented reality
- Microphone
- Instant payments
Benefits of mobile apps:
- No constraint in functions
- Connect to a mobile market
- Significant competitive edge because of accessibility
- In-depth analytics and customizable
- Superior UX to mobile websites
- Connect with your users via push notifications
- Additional offline options
- Safer than mobile websites
Drawbacks of mobile apps:
- More marketing is required
- More expensive to develop and support than a website
- More investment in design
- High-quality user experience is required
What is a web app?
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Web applications are programmes stored on a server. To access these, users are redirected to a web browser interface through the Internet. These apps can include e-commerce businesses, EMI or Financial calculators, stock trading, online banking, etc. These apps usually work on any browser, but some of these are exclusively compatible with specific browsers. They deliver a user experience similar to a mobile app. Web applications, like web pages, are accessible from any device with a browser and internet access. Some of the examples of web apps are:
- Slack
- Google Drive
- YouTube
- Dropbox
- Spotify
Benefits of web app:
- High-quality coverage regardless of phone or operating system.
- Its deployment requires less time and resources, making it cost-effective to complete.
- It is widely available and does not require approval from markets or app stores.
Drawbacks of web apps:
- There might be limitations regarding access to standard mobile device features such as the camera, GPS, and microphone.
- Requires an internet connection.
- Lack of push notifications leads to a loss of interest and consumers.
- User experience is unique for every user since different web browsers interact differently with the operation of the web app.
What is a desktop app?
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Does your target audience use laptops and desktops? Then, desktop apps can be an excellent choice! Providing a clean and precise user interface, desktop apps become the perfect choice when apps are required to be highly responsive – perfect examples of these are drawing programmes and games – requiring immediate user action. At certain times, customers are not allowed to install and download software from unknown sources. Large corporations impose restrictions on computers to prevent users from making any modifications. It’s advisable to make a choice keeping these circumstances in mind.
Benefits of desktop apps:
- Data security for sensitive information since data is saved on the system.
- No internet connectivity required as it is built into the system and can be accessed anytime.
- Free availability; for paid apps, the user can keep them for a long time.
- Limited owners and security concerns
- Cheaper alternative
Drawbacks of desktop apps:
- Requires excess hard drive space on the PC. New files added are also saved on the computer, taking up extra space and overloading the system.
- The process is time-consuming, as it involves downloading, conducting a conformity check, uploading, and then restarting the system to setup the app successfully.
- Manual downloads and updates
- These can be used only on one device
How to decide between a web app, a mobile app, or a desktop app?
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Choosing between a mobile, desktop, and web app can be tricky, as it will affect your business, sales, and growth. Even though the choice isn’t a simple one, it can be made by analyzing what your business requires, user behaviour and the kind of experience you’d want them to have.
Develop a web-based app if:
- Need to reach a larger and broader audience.
- Adding of special features or architecture that is more smooth to use on desktop PCs.
- Your app delivers additional computer solutions, like connected cooperation.
Develop a mobile-based app if:
- You want to add features to your app with helpful offline features
- It requires access to phone/tablet native functionality – GPS, Bluetooth, microphone, etc.
- Your customers might use the app several times a day
- Require your app to provide a high-quality user experience; and
- You can afford significant development and maintenance expenditures
- Immediate release of app is required, without creating other platform versions
- Have a restricted budget or would like to spend on a superior product rather than a specific platform.
Develop a desktop-based app if:
You can opt for a desktop programme if your app requires a considerable amount of processing power or requires desktop computer components. If your users are the ones that work in fixed environment and require offline access, developing a desktop app will be the perfect choice.
Things you need to consider before making a decision
- Target audience
- Platform
- Features
- User interface (UI) and user experience (UX)
- Development team
- Budget
- Marketing and promotion
- Testing and quality assurance
- App store submission
- Maintenance and updates
Web app, Mobile app, and Desktop app – Which is better?
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| Mobile App | Web App | Desktop App | |
| Download | Download required before it is accessible | Downloading not required; available from internet browser. | Downloading not required; available from internet browser. |
| Major uses | Offer range of products and versatile content. | Offer range of products and versatile content. | Offers information and other basic stuff. |
| Development Difficulty | Challenging to build, but readily available to all users. | Developing is easier than creating an app for other platforms. | Easy development through readily available information. |
| User Adaptability | Updates available on the Play Store. | Accessible to all users immediately, with no download necessary. | Accessible to all users immediately, with no download necessary. |
| Accessible by | A mobile platform | Web browsers | Web browsers |
| Authentication | Depending on the app, authentication is frequently required. | Depending on the app, authentication is frequently required. | Authentication is typically optional. |
| Connectivity | An internet connection is required. | An internet connection is required. | It may be used without an internet connection or with one. |
| Discoverability | App store search | Search engine | Search engine |
Final Thoughts
The best way to decide between web, mobile, and desktop software is to consider your resources and time. For starters, choosing only one platform to develop your app is considered a priority. If accessibility is your objective, a web-based application is generally a good option. Similarly, if security is your primary issue, a desktop version is the best choice for your company. If you prioritize future user experience and are willing to invest in your marketing strategies, developing a mobile app version of your application is a brilliant idea.
