Google’s Fresh Two Way Strategy: Android Apps on Chrome and More
A shocking piece of news came out today, as Android apps are finding their way to Chrome, while fresh APIs for Chrome apps are coming to Android. Back in January the search engine giant had detailed a way to use Apache Cordova to make Chrome apps run and appear natively on Android.
The new and improved Chrome Apps for Mobile project relies on Cordova and includes extra support for APIs and allows developers to build apps faster. The new version of Chrome Apps for Mobile includes APIs for Google Cloud Messaging, rich notifications and so much more. There’s also an improved developer workflow and modern WebView capabilities, that have been expanded to older versions of Android.
The developer workflow for Chrome Apps for Mobile is faster and simpler thanks to a new live deploy feature. Chrome apps are usually built with web technologies like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. By including Cordova in the mix, the apps appear like native Android software and expand the number of pieces of software for Chrome. Is the sign of an unification of platforms and does this mean we can get famous Android apps on Chromebooks?
