Threads Web App Launches

Started rolling out earlier this week, but by yesterday, I think it was available to everyone. Missing some features from the native iPhone/Android apps (e.g. there’s no access to the chronological “following” feed yet), but quite solid overall — and there are some very nice touches on the features that are present. [Update: Turns out the following feed is there, I just didn’t see it. There’s a toggle button in the lower left of the window. Huzzah.]

MG Siegler has a post comparing the web app vs. the native app on an iPad. Just as with Threads’s older sibling Instagram, the native iOS app only runs with an iPhone screen layout on iPad. The web app (again, just like with Instagram) looks and feels very much like a native app would.

MacOS 14 Sonoma — currently in public beta, set for release this fall — adds built-in support for saving web apps as standalone apps, like the “Add to Home Screen” feature that’s been in iOS since even before the App Store. I’m not running Sonoma yet, but those who are report being pleased with Threads as a web app. Parker Ortolani has a nice tip for making the icon look better, too.

★ Friday, 25 August 2023