For weeks we have predicted that iOS 17.4 will be a historic update for iPhone users in the European Union. And it is on the old continent that we will receive many changes due to the new European regulations which involve, among other things, being able to have more application stores on iOS outside of the App Store.
Another of the changes that Apple is forced to implement concerns the opening to other web browsing engines. As a technology enthusiast in general and Apple in particular, This is an update I’m looking forward to, even if it will also involve resignations which, unfortunately, do not seem to be able to be reversed in the short term.
Opening the doors to the App Store is positive (even if it’s scary)
One of the implications of European laws for Apple is that they must grant the ability to download apps elsewhere than just the App Store. Finally, it will not be by downloading them from the Internet as happens on Android with APKs, but rather by opening the App Store to other stores.
As a result, during these weeks, I have read and heard other enthusiasts complaining about this opening of the iOS store. Whether this is imposed and not on Apple’s own initiative is an interesting debate, but this one is entirely different. Most complaints come from the privacy and security side, but the truth is that they don’t have to involve anything negative.
Me as a user I think the more options we have, the better.. This encourages competition between developers and while it is true that not everyone will be able to upload their own store in the App Store due to Apple’s economic requirements, they will be able to access these other stores.
Being faced with a sea of uncertainty is something that motivates me. Because yes, we already know that certain stores like the Epic Store will arrive on iOS with this opening. However, there are still many unknowns about what kind of new apps will appear on iOS. And I like it. Being able to explore these stores in search of hidden treasures, and always with caution, is something that will always interest me.
Using another browser on the iPhone and making it truly distinctive is another highlight
Another interesting point that I already mentioned in the introduction is that related to the browser. So far, Safari comes by default, but this will change (if we want) with iOS 17.4. The first time we open this browser after the update, a screen will appear suggesting several options to use as the default browser on the iPhone, including Safari itself. We can choose another one and it will automatically download and configure as the default one.
Apart from this, there are other positive implications for explore the limits of iOS navigation. And browsers will no longer need to rely on WebKit, the web browser development API on iOS and which until now has been the only way for any developer to launch their iPhone web browsing app.
Yes, for many years we have had various options such as Google Chrome, Opera or Mozilla Firefox, among others. However, since they all have the same Apple engine, they ultimately remain a sort of optimized Safari. They may add additional options and change the interface somewhat, but in essence it is the same.
With iOS 17.4 we will now be able to find complete browsers adapted to each developer and this This could open the door to mobile browsers much closer to those we have on the desktop.. Let’s take extensions as an example, which are already present now, but in a much more limited way than in a computer browser.
The negative side is that we are going to say goodbye to webapps
As always, nothing is perfect. And even for me, who receives all this news with good humor, there is no exception. With the previous point also comes the end of support for PWAs, acronym for Progressive Web Applications, also called webapps. These are present on virtually every device, including iPhones (although they will disappear soon).
If you don’t know what it is, It’s a sort of “mini app” that works via the web. It is ideal for developers who do not have sufficient resources to create an application, making it easier to create via the web with some advantages over a conventional web page. You can even receive push notifications, which Apple introduced with iOS 16.4.
For the user this also makes sense, because he does not need to download an app and thus even free up space on the iPhone. Additionally, you can add to iPhone home screen as if it were just another app, and although they work with Safari in the background, they do not open directly in the browser. However, this is about to change.
We can still add favorites to the home screen, but it will not be the same, since it will open in the browser application.
Well, as we already knew, web applications will no longer be supported. The fact that each web browser developer uses their own architecture prevents Apple from supporting web applications (even if Safari is used). This was communicated by the company itself in a note on its website aimed at developers.
In my personal case, I admit that I use webapps less and less, but I still had a few left that should disappear from my home screen. And since we are updating to iOS 17.4, they will no longer be operational. Although it is possible that they will return in the future, this is already considered something complex in terms of implementation by Apple. The alternative will be to add favorites to the home screen, although it is not the same thing.
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