Apple’s redesigned web App Store is still useless to me

For years, the “web app store” actually provided the ability to browse individual listings of apps for iOS, macOS, or other Apple operating systems. It has become much more useful, although in my opinion it is still not true to reality.

Apple now has a completely new experience for browsing the App Store online, be it the iOS App Store, MacOS App Store or any other app store. For years, apps.apple.com merely served as a billboard for the App Store as a product, describing its features and security rather than providing users with functional access to millions of apps. within This.

Although Apple hosted separate, stand-alone web pages for each application, these pages essentially existed in isolation. They could not be found through any official centralized interface, and could usually only be found if the user had a direct link, often transmitted from an Apple device or discovered through a third-party search engine. There was no official way for a user on a third-party device, such as a Windows PC or Android phone, to browse categories, browse curated listings, or directly search the catalog. A big limitation compared to competing app stores from other platforms.

There is now a centralized App Store website that looks more like the actual mobile/desktop App Store interface. Visitors to the site are now greeted by a fully browseable, searchable catalog that mirrors the native app experience. The portal allows you to switch between lists of applications for all major Apple platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro.

This web version works almost the same as the app version. The new web hub includes a Today tab that features curated recommendations and editorial content. Additionally, the entire catalog is now sorted into familiar categories, including productivity, entertainment, adventure, and utilities.

However, there is one huge problem: apps cannot be downloaded or purchased directly from the Internet. In my opinion, this new web version, while more functional, is still useless because it's really just a glorified online catalog – you can just go to the App Store and look at the same offerings for yourself while being able to download them to your device. This is a huge disadvantage compared to the Play Store, where you can initiate remote downloads of apps directly from the browser.

I hope Apple does this better over time.

Source: Edge