[elvirs]

I think people actually prefer using decent mobile web apps over native apps and app vendors are actually actively fighting it by putting annoying 'get the app' link overlaying content on mobile web. they are trying to push people as much as as they can to force them to download the damn native app. you don't see any app publisher putting a link to mobile web app over the content inside the native app prompting people to use mobile web app over native app. For most of the content websites I use I don't feel the need for the app (twitter, reddit, LinkedIn, etc.) but they are making the mobile web experience horrible by putting that content overlaying link on every damn page.

[KaiserPro]

The end user really doesn't care, they care about the following things:

o can I find what I want o can I find it easily o can I find it fast o can I view what I've found properly o nothing gets in the way of getting what they want.

slow load time, dodgy networking, waiting for app to load from notification, losing your place, inconsistent or foreign UI, all make the user scream in annoyance.

"TRY OUR APP" fits stops you from viewing what you want.

Linked in on mobile is shite, you have to use the app. The emails don't redirect to the app, which is fucking stupid

Twitter's desktop site is rubbish, the mobile version is slighty less annoying, you have to use the app.

Facebook's webapp is really slow.

[HillaryBriss]

> I think people actually prefer using decent mobile web apps over native apps ...

agree. right or wrong, as an android user, i feel less vulnerable, less bloated, less violated, using a web app than i do installing a native app.

[zepto]

Or, the mobile app experience is better, and the overlay link is a convenience, rather than “actively fighting”.

[rchaud]

> Or, the mobile app experience is better, and the overlay link is a convenience

For whom is it better? Me, the customer, or you, the vendor? I buy furniture from Wayfair's website, and browse on the site quite often. On the mobile site, I'm able to view products, add/remove them from a wishlist, and make a purchase. All from a browser with ad and tracking blockers enabled.

Wayfair still puts a "Download the app!" popup on the site, even though it can see from my repeated visits and purchases that I primarily use the mobile site. I imagine it's because on an app, notifications are opt-out and tracking is continuous.

[zepto]

For me the customer. The sites I use most often have better apps than websites.

As for your imagination about tracking, it’s both false and paranoid. Mobile notifications are opt-in, and tracking is limited to behavior within the app, unlike the web where you are tracked across sites wherever you go.

[asdff]

The overlay link for reddit takes up 1/3 the screen, and the link to hide it is in 9pt font at the edge while clicking anywhere else opens the App store.

[elvirs]

its definitely the opposite of convenience. if i need the app i know where to find it. its especially annoying when the link keeps reappearing after i dismissed it once already.