App Clips and Instant Apps — actually used?
Apple's App Clips and Google's Instant Apps promised app-on-demand. Five years later — niche but useful.
App Clip (iOS) and Instant App (Android) let users run a small subset of an app without installing. Idea: try-before-you-buy for apps.
What works in practice:
- QR codes in restaurants and parking — order food, pay for parking, no install
- NFC tags for transit and museums
- Smart App Banners in mobile Safari
What doesn't work:
- 10MB hard limit (App Clip) is brutal for media-heavy apps
- Discoverability — users don't know clips exist
- Privacy and tracking limitations make analytics harder
If you have physical context (poster, sticker, NFC tag) — clips are great. For general distribution — full app still wins.