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PWA support has been a part of Chrome OS and Chrome on desktop for some time now. PWAs leverage all the best new tech the web has to offer, giving users more native experiences that rival (and sometimes beat) what you can get from an installed app from a store.
I fully believe in the potential of the PWA to shake up the way we use, promote, package, and distribute apps in the future. Both Microsoft and Google are both doing their part in this adoption, making it easier and easier for users to find and install PWAs right from the web and via app stores as well.
Google is taking yet another big step in the adoption of PWAs as we’re now seeing the addition of a new intent in the URL bar signaling users to install the PWA directly from a website if it is available. Coming to us from TechDows, this feature is currently available in the Canary channel but the bug report attached to it is a Priority 1 set for release in Chrome 75.
The idea here is pretty simple: instead of sites having to bake in yet another script to prompt you to download their PWA, users will now know that there is a PWA available to them if the “install +” shows up on the right side of the URL bar (also known as the Omnibox in Chrome).
As PWAs become more and more prevalent on the web, simple tools like this are needed to make users both aware and able to easily download them. My guess is this will be only yet another step towards the wider adoption of PWAs by both the general public and by developers as well. And I say the more, the better. I’m excited to see the growth and potential of the open web.
