HACKER Q&A
📣 dragosbulugean

Can the ARM Macs/PCs end the web as we know it?


It seems that the new macs are able to run mobile apps, and it won't take long until android does the same on windows pcs.

Is there a chance that in 10 years everybody is using native mobile apps on desktops?

Chuckling...


  👤 bryik Accepted Answer ✓
So the choice would be: build an Android app and an iOS app, or build a web app? Eh, I'd rather build a web app.

👤 auganov
You could flip it around and ask - given that phone chips are approaching desktop level performance, how native do you need to go? We're already seeing native apps become less "native". Using high level frameworks that provide a common core between platforms is pretty standard nowadays.

IMO the biggest driver already is and will be app store/platform policies. Fundamental hardware constraints are secondary.


👤 mikece
“Always bet on the web.”

PWA trumps mobile apps — until or unless it can be articulated why a PWA/hybrid app won’t work, but that is the small minority of app cases.


👤 4778468d
No.

ARM has a huge problem with compatibility and secrecy.

Buy a random intel machine .... will it run Windows and Linux? YES.

Buy a random ARM device..,, will it run Linux? Maybe, probably not, even if it does, probably there’s problems and issues caused by the CPU vendor keeping aspects of its design secret.

ARM is a very very long way from replacing Intel.


👤 thesuperbigfrog
>> it won't take long until android does the same on windows pcs

Chromebooks run android apps today.

Windows computers will run android apps with BlueStacks or a similar emulator.

Until mobile apps can do EVERYTHING that desktops apps do, desktop apps are here to stay.


👤 TechNerds
This ColdFusion Video goes into a deeper explanation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuF9weSkS68

👤 adamnemecek
Why not just go back to desktop apps instead of mobile desktop apps?