Apple Safari web manifest support

Since Apple released the iOS 11.3 and Safari 13 updates, basic support for the web manifest specification was included. There are some limitations to the current usage and support of the web manifest:

• The home screen icon is still referenced from the apple-touch-icon
• Transparent icons are not supported
• No 3D touch menu support
• No splash screen
• Can't lock orientation
• Display fullscreen and minimal-ui not supported properly

Apple still has work left so that they fully support using the web manifest, but it is a start. I believe that over the coming months we should see support being improved. One thing browser vendors struggle with is turning the ship to support modern ways of providing functionality.

Migrating from a 10-year-old way of providing user experience like touch icons and mobile web app capable features to a different mechanism is tough. If they do it too fast, they can and will break many sites, which is something all browser vendors fear. So, expect the transition to be gradual.

I would also like to point out that the PWA support, especially relating to service workers, is not yet supported in webviews used by many native apps. This also means that any hybrid applications will not have access to these features as a PWA, including the service worker.

Pseudo browsers like Chrome, Edge, and FireFox on iOS also do not support any progressive web app functionality on iOS. These browsers use the webview to render pages and not their own engines. So, for now, they are also limited.

The positive news is that Safari supports all major browsers on all major platforms, and nows support basic web manifest consumption.