Is WhatsApp a Native App or Hybrid?

WhatsApp is a messaging app that was released in 2009 and has since then become one of the most used communication tools in the world. It’s available on both iOS and Android devices, as well as on desktop computers.

The question of whether WhatsApp is a native app or hybrid has been debated for some time. The answer is that it is a hybrid app. Native apps are designed to work specifically with one type of operating system, while hybrid apps are built using web technologies but are wrapped in native code so they can be distributed through app stores.

WhatsApp was initially built by two former Yahoo engineers, Brian Acton and Jan Koum, using HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. This allowed them to write code once and have it work across multiple platforms.

Despite this, the application is still written in native code for each platform. This enables WhatsApp to utilise platform-specific features such as push notifications on iOS and Android.

WhatsApp also uses various other technologies such as PhoneGap, which allows developers to use web technologies to create mobile applications, Cordova for distributing the application on multiple platforms, and Node.js for its real-time messaging system.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, WhatsApp is a hybrid app that combines web technologies with native code to provide users with an experience tailored specifically to each platform they use it on. It utilises various frameworks such as PhoneGap and Cordova in order to achieve this, while also taking advantage of platform-specific features like push notifications.