[happytoexplain]

>as easy as creating a website

This strikes me as odd - I have a much easier time making a well-functioning native app (iOS or Android) than the equivalent website. That's not typically a checkmark in the web column for web vs app pros and cons.

Unless we're including distribution when we say "creating".

[LVB]

>Unless we're including distribution when we say "creating".

I think it has to be included given how much traffic I see from mobile devs I follow about getting stuck in some review blackhole, running afoul of a TOS or payment rule, etc. Getting the app built is in your control, but getting it to end users has a big dependency on others, potentially. The idea of being able to push code to a server you control and deliver instant updates is appealing.

[strogonoff]

Engineers have vastly different definitions of “well-functioning” and “easy”. Once I saw an app that used accelerometer API to determine in real-time whether the user is walking. It was done as a web app (native was considered too difficult) and the data was sent to GCP for processing. Even without the GCP code, which involved a custom ML model, it was in the hundreds of LoC. I don’t know how well it would function in real use, since it did not really reach mass production, but I do know it is possible to do completely on-device with very little bespoke logic and a very small LoC count on iOS (and I’m sure on Android) where APIs would give you exactly that (and even movement speed, if needed).