Apps: Slim in the Cloud or Large on the Phone?

Great little read over on Mobile Commerce Daily.

Moving data "to the cloud" is all the rage but there are advantages and disadvantages.

I had one client overseas with a very unreliable phone network for the country.  The use case they provided was limited, brief coverage that couldn't be relied upon.  They needed bursts of updates and a heavy package of data on the phone.  The idea of cloud based data just wouldn't work for them given their country's infrastructure.

This article is right in line with that scenario.  Read on:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/shopping-apps-shedding-space-run-risk-of-inhibiting-experience

Here is a snippet from the article:

Retailers with mobile applications that take up a significant amount of space on smartphones can mitigate the problem by moving features to the cloud and using eight-bit images, but larger apps with unique functionality may have an edge.

Walgreen’s is the latest example of a retailer slimming down its app to save room on consumers’ smartphones, which can significantly reduce the risk of being the first to go when users run out of space, although the benefits of doing so may be moot in a few years. Retailers that are looking into slimming down should be careful not to do so in a manner that inhibits the user experience, as those with beneficial features that stand out from the competition can be successful despite a larger app size.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant