It’s official.
WordPress developers can now take their skill set and create WordPress apps for both iOS and Android without learning a new coding language.
That’s right, AppPresser, the first WordPress mobile app framework, has paired up with the PhoneGap API to enable WordPress developers to deploy apps to app stores on mobile devices.
Not only does this open the app development world to those who haven’t learned Objective-C or Java, but it also allows them to create apps for both iPhone and Android devices without the need to create two separately coded projects. Awesome.
How to Create WordPress Apps with AppPresser
At its core, AppPresser is a free plugin that enables WordPress to use the core functionality of your mobile devices.
- Uses JavaScript to takeover phone features like the camera
- Allows app-specific extensions and themes to extend WordPress
- Adds a settings page for your app layout on your site
- Merges PhoneGap with WordPress to enable deployment to iOS and Android
The plugin is fairly impressive on its own, but you won’t actually be able to create WordPress apps with it alone.
For starters, you’ll need to purchase AppPresser themes to create the layout of the app because standard themes aren’t built for this (yet). On top of that, you’ll need to buy individual extensions to enable native device functionality like the camera or geolocation.
Finally, in order to push your final product to mobile app stores, you’ll need to buy the build service from AppPresser or PhoneGap.
It may seem like a lot, but compared to developing an app on its own, this system allows developers to build apps rapidly due to the packaged contents and shortcodes that the plugin, themes, and extensions supply.
How AppPresser will Change WordPress
Matt Mullenweg announced last year that he predicts WordPress to grow from a CMS to a platform for apps, anticipating that the core functionality of WordPress handles the same requirements that apps need to work – primarily database and design aesthetic. AppPresser brings WordPress one step closer to this reality, inviting WordPress to power apps and represent in mobile app stores.
Just as WordPress has grown from a Blogging platform to a CMS, it will now expand into the world of apps and this is only the beginning. What app would you build with WordPress?
