Apple's iOS 16.4 and iPadOS 16.4 betas add support for Safari web apps on the homescreen to send push notifications and show notification badges
Apple's new iOS and iPadOS 16.4 betas will let Safari web apps on your homescreen send you push notifications, according to a new post on the WebKit blog.
The VergeJay Peters
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple had signaled opt-in web push for iOS in 2022 after earlier beta code pointed to the feature; the 16.4 betas move that planned Safari web-notification support into a testable implementation. The addition of badges makes Home Screen web apps more legible as persistent app-like services, not merely saved websites.
The subsequent public 16.4 release confirms this beta feature reached users as Safari push notifications for Home Screen web apps. Later EU browser-engine changes extend the Home Screen web-app discussion beyond Safari alone.
First-order effects
Web developers with Home Screen Safari apps can ask users for permission to send notifications and display badges, gaining two re-engagement mechanisms previously absent from those apps on iOS and iPadOS.
Safari and WebKit become a more viable delivery route for app-like web experiences, while users gain notification control through an opt-in model.
Second-order effects
Native iOS app developers whose products primarily rely on alerts and unread counts face a closer substitute from web developers, increasing the value of differentiation beyond basic re-engagement features.
Businesses that maintain both websites and native apps can reassess whether a Home Screen web app covers enough of the customer-notification use case to justify parallel development.
Third-order effects
If Apple continues narrowing notification and installation gaps, the boundary between a native iOS app and a Home Screen web app shifts toward platform capabilities and distribution rules rather than basic user engagement features.
The later EU support for browser-specific web-app engines suggests that control over the web-app stack may become a competitive and regulatory issue alongside the capabilities of web apps themselves.
The trend: Mobile platforms are incrementally granting web apps native-like engagement features, making browser and engine control increasingly consequential for app distribution.
After years of web apps being second class citizens on iOS, websites pinned on your Home Screen will be able to receive push notifications starting on iOS 16.4. Companies looking to avoid Apple's 30% cut of purchases have one less reason to ship an app. https://webkit.org/...
I think @Apple adding #5G SA to iOS 16.4 will considerably improve the landscape for developers looking to deploy standalone 5G in applications, starting with @TMobile since it is the only carrier that fully supports it and apparently the only option https://9to5mac.com/...
Massive release with great additions to CSS, Web Components, PWAs (without mentioning them by name), ... and tons of fixes 👏 My favorite is to see support for @property land. It's the key part that unlocks the full potential of CSS Custom Properties - https://web.dev/... https://…
I'm mind-blown 🤯 by the Safari 16.4 beta release: https://webkit.org/.... Some highlights: 🛎️ Web Push for apps added to the Home Screen 📲 Ability for other browsers to add apps to th... https://toot.cafe/...
iOS 16.4 Beta 1 (20E5212f) changes 🧵: The biggest change today IMHO is support for Web Push. Web Push removes one of the big reasons a lot of companies make native iOS apps. Data Detectors now offer to “Open in Web Browser” instead of “Open in Safari”. https://twitter.com/...
Great news for indie makers 👌 Web apps on iOS will become a lot more powerful with support for push notifications amongst other things https://webkit.org/...
Here's an iOS 16.4 surprise: the Messages app now supports rich previews for Mastodon posts when you share a link to a post in an iMessage conversation. This brings Apple's Mastodon support up to parity with the long-standing integration with Twitter for similar tweet balloons.
It's exciting to see folks talking about implementing web push for their web apps! Be sure to create an interface that lets your users take the first step — to gesture they want to get notifications. Like a subscribe button. It's up to *them* to opt in. https://webkit.org/...
Apple studiously avoided PWA features for years. Then when the regulatory pressure increases, they suddenly ship several PWA features at once. A happy coincidence! (They still seem to studiously avoid the term “PWA” though, which is kinda weird.) https://twitter.com/...
iOS and iPadOS 16.4 beta 1 is now available with: • Web Push for Home Screen web apps • Focus support for Web Push • Badging API • Manifest ID • Third-party browser support for Add to Home Screen And more: https://webkit.org/...