Ask HN: Thoughts on Webview vs. React Native for mobile app?

1 pointshnroo993mo ago3 comments

I'm a solo webdev working on a simple multiplayer game site. My tech stack consists of a Next.js frontend and node.js backend. I use socket.io to handle multiplayer interactions.

As the title implies, I want to make a mobile app for the site. I was looking into React Native at first, but then learned about webviews from this great blog post by Puzzmo[0]. Webviews seems appealing because I would be able to reuse many existing components (though I am aware of next.js related challenges from having to export a static build) and be able to stay comfortable and productive™ in a webdev context. I don't mind losing that "native" mobile UX goodness either since the tradeoff of better DX seems worth it given that I'm working on this alone. There also seems to be some neat tooling for webviews to streamline the development process e.g. Capacitor by Ionic[1].

Anyone have any opinions/insights/horror stories on all this?

[0] https://blog.puzzmo.com/posts/2025/06/01/ios-app-architecture/

[1] https://capacitorjs.com/

3 comments

DecoPerson3mo ago

Go with WebView.

As you’re a solo dev, one of your most important resources is your mental capacity. Native platforms & their dev stacks are a world of their own.

Going with WebView allows you to spend your time on other things that matter more. It also helps you prototype quickly and get a feel for what works.

Later, after you have a better, more solid idea of what your game is, if performance is an issue, then you can convert parts of it (or all of it) to native.

(By the time your game is done, I suspect the mobile app dev landscape is going to be quite different than what it is now.)

hnroo99OP3mo ago

Yeah everything you said resonates, thanks for your input.

Your last paragraph is interesting though, in what way do you think mobile dev is going to change?

mvkel3mo ago

I have yet to see a webview that doesn't feel like a webview. In a native app, it inevitably ends up feeling like oil and water, empirically. Worth the extra effort to make it proper native, despite whatever promises the webview people give. They don't hold up at the important edges.

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