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PhoneGap

PhoneGap is an open source framework that allows developers to build mobile applications using web technologies like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It wraps the web code into native containers to access device features on iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

What is PhoneGap?

PhoneGap is an open-source mobile development framework originally created by Nitobi. It allows developers to build applications for mobile devices using web technologies like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The key benefit of PhoneGap is that it wraps the web code into native containers, allowing access to device features on platforms like iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

Some key things to know about PhoneGap:

  • Open source and free to use
  • Owned by Adobe
  • Works by packaging web code into native apps
  • Allows web code to access native device features via JavaScript APIs
  • Supports building for iOS, Android, Windows Phone and more
  • Has a large plugin ecosystem to extend functionality
  • Apps may not have quite as high performance as pure native
  • Simplifies multi-platform app development

PhoneGap helps web developers reuse their existing web development skills to build mobile apps. Instead of learning platform-specific languages like Swift, Java or C#, they can use web standards for faster, easier development. If native functionality is needed, PhoneGap plug-ins bridge the gap.

The Best PhoneGap Alternatives

Top Apps like PhoneGap

Android Studio, Qt, Xcode, Website 2 APK Builder, WeSetupYourWebViewApp, WebViewGold, Qt Creator, Ionic Framework, Uno Platform, B4X, Apache Cordova are some alternatives to PhoneGap.

Android Studio

Android Studio is an integrated development environment (IDE) designed specifically for Android app development. It provides a unified environment where you can build Android apps from start to finish.Some key features and benefits of Android Studio include:Based on the IntelliJ IDEA IDE, which provides a robust editor, code...

Qt

Qt is a popular cross-platform application development framework used for developing GUI (graphical user interface) and CLI (command-line interface) applications that can run on multiple operating systems such as Windows, macOS, Linux, and Unix platforms, as well as on mobile platforms like Android and iOS. It provides developers with a...

Xcode

Xcode is an integrated development environment (IDE) developed by Apple for developing software for its platforms, including macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS and tvOS. It is available for free on the Mac App Store.Some key features of Xcode include:Source code editor with syntax highlighting and code completion supportGraphical user...

Website 2 APK Builder

Website 2 APK Builder is a powerful yet easy-to-use software solution that enables anyone to convert their website or web application into a native Android app with minimal coding or technical knowledge required. It provides an intuitive drag-and-drop interface to import your website, customize icons, colors, loading screens and other aspects...

WeSetupYourWebViewApp

WeSetupYourWebViewApp is a service designed to make it easy for web developers to create progressive web apps that can be distributed on mobile app stores. The service handles:Generating required assets like app icons and splash screensWrapping the PWA in a thin native shell with a webview for iOS, Android...

WebViewGold

WebViewGold is a lightweight Windows application designed specifically for easily showing web pages in a dedicated window. It functions similarly to a web browser, but without all the extra toolbars, menus, and distractions of a typical browser.Some key features of WebViewGold include:Clean simple interface for showcasing web pages...

Qt Creator

Qt Creator is a powerful, cross-platform integrated development environment (IDE) designed specifically for developing applications using the Qt framework. It provides a comprehensive set of tools for Qt development, making the process of creating complex Qt applications quicker and easier.Key features of Qt Creator include:Code Editors - Advanced...

Ionic Framework

The Ionic Framework is an open source software development kit (SDK) for building high quality, cross-platform mobile apps and progressive web apps with web technologies like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Released in 2013 by Ionic (formerly known as Drifty Co.), Ionic has become one of the most popular options for hybrid...

Uno Platform

Uno Platform is an open-source UI framework that allows developers to build native mobile, desktop and web applications using C# and XAML from a single codebase.It provides a single API surface across iOS, Android, Windows, macOS and WebAssembly. Uno leverages XAML from existing Microsoft frameworks like WPF, UWP and...

B4X

B4X (Basic4android) is a rapid application development tool for building native apps across multiple platforms including Android, iOS, Windows, Linux, MacOS and Raspberry Pi. It uses a Basic-like programming language that is easy to learn yet powerful enough for professional developers.Some key highlights of B4X:Write...

Apache Cordova

Apache Cordova is an open-source mobile application development framework originally created by Nitobi. It enables developers to use standard web technologies like HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript for cross-platform development, avoiding native development languages like Objective-C for iOS and Java for Android.Cordova wraps the HTML and JavaScript code into a...