Which one is the future, Web or APP?

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The adoption of any new technology often brings with it a lot of debate about how best to implement and use it. Whatever the reason, people naturally like to choose sides. The same is true in the world of VR, where topics that have sparked heated discussions include: Oculus vs Vive, gaming experience vs reality experience, and eye tracking vs gesture control. However, the discussion that has dominated the mobile ecosystem for many years has also come to the VR field with developers: which is the future, the Web or the app?

Initially, most of the research and development was done on web applications, but as technology continued to develop, more turned to apps. However, this shift was only short-lived. The continued growth of VR will expose the limitations of apps, making the market demand for the web more obvious. Here are the reasons.

The difference between web and app

Let’s put aside the controversy. Apps are easily available for download from places like Google Play or the Apple App Store. They are usually designed for a specific type of device, so they can take full advantage of the device’s hardware (accelerometer, camera, etc.). Users can use these apps to carry out their daily activities even when the device is offline.

In contrast, the Web can be accessed through a web browser on any device. Obviously, the Web is only usable when connected to the Internet. However, users can get around this by taking advantage of application cache and local storage on their devices. Although Web applications often try to look like native apps, they are usually developed using HTML5 and can be accessed by users on any mobile device.

Typically native apps are a more popular choice for VR. Part of the reason for this is that native apps are more adaptable to the form factor of each specific phone, so users feel they are getting the best experience. In many cases, mobile users and developers turn to native apps because they feel that web apps can only provide a more generic experience. However, if the situation is the same for VR, web apps will show a series of advantages that will eventually make them the best choice for users and developers.

Benefits of Web Apps

Unlike native apps, web apps offer cross-platform availability and work on nearly all devices, allowing developers to ensure consistent performance of VR content across all platforms.

While local apps can be customized to specific devices, this creates an unfairness. Users can only experience performance benefits if they use faster devices or better graphics cards. With web apps, the quality of VR content is controlled by the company, and the effect is the same no matter where the viewer chooses to watch it.

Contrary to popular belief, web apps are also fast because they are written in JavaScript and use WebGL to render interactive graphics. Since WebGL uses the graphics card instead of the CPU to perform its calculations, web apps save more processing power to make VR experiences more immersive.

Companies can continue to produce VR content for a wider audience, and web applications also enable developers to control and manage what specific content can be viewed. For local applications, companies can only let users download and push updates.

Given that there will always be users who are reluctant to update native apps, companies run the risk of becoming increasingly disconnected from their audiences. By controlling VR apps through a web-based interface, companies can quickly update content and better manage what their audience sees.

Ubiquitous software is also a major advantage for manufacturers. HTML and JavaScript are standard tools for all web development, so developers aren't constantly forced to retrain to meet the needs of each new device operating system.

Limitations of Web Applications

Of course, web apps are not without their drawbacks. The need for an internet connection is an obvious issue, which often limits when and where VR apps can be used. However, this shortcoming can be addressed by leveraging HTML5, which makes mobile web app content available even when offline.

Calling the device's hardware is also a challenge. For example, VR applications need to access the mobile device's accelerometer to collect positioning data, such as tracking position, head movement, etc. However, some mobile browsers are unable to report this data. They can only receive data transmitted from the device and cannot collect it themselves. The end result is that device tracking may work well on one phone, but will have problems on another phone.

In order for VR to truly become part of everyone’s daily lives, the ecosystem we are trying to integrate needs to be tested. Ensuring that consumers have access to consistent Wi-Fi and more capable browsers will not only make web applications more usable, but will also create a more open environment for developers to continue to innovate and push the technology forward.

So who will laugh the most?

One big sign that the Web is finally winning the battle is that businesses are putting more attention and resources into browsers. As systems like Flash and Silverlight fade, developers are finding new ways to build applications using simple browser-friendly HTML.

As mobile devices continue to diversify, it will soon become unfeasible to develop specific applications for each available device. This is why web-based applications are becoming more and more popular, especially as browser capabilities have caught up with those of native applications. The Unity 5 engine has set a great example by allowing code to be converted to HTML5. This strongly supports the fact that VR content will become more and more common on browsers in the future.

Although the discussion about where VR will go will continue, the diversity of devices and the huge volume of new content will make web applications recognized as the dominant platform in the market. The benefit to users, designers and enterprises is that they do not need to stick to the choice of specific devices. Since browsers are also moving towards becoming platforms at the operating system level in the future, it is obvious that VR will only be a good move if it caters to this market choice.