Trusted Web Activities
Tags: android, web, twa, pwa
Published: 2019-09-12 23:56:39

A new way to integrate your web app with your Android!

![Alt Text](https://thepracticaldev.s3.amazonaws.com/i/9l17mlfzv9ers5nkoywh.jpeg)

Hey guys, today I'll tell you a little bit more about TWA.

But after all, **what is a TWA, why and when to use?**

#What is there today?

Well, first of all, it's worth remembering that even before **TWA**, there are **two other ways** to integrate our web content into an Android app:

**WebViews:**

WebView is the most used component, mainly because there are some successful frameworks in the market, such as Ionic, that work in this format. With it you have **full-screen** support of your application, working with **cookies**, and linking Javascript code to Android code. The downside is that its **performance is compromised** and varies with each operating system.

![Alt Text](https://thepracticaldev.s3.amazonaws.com/i/7eknd5nkt1g50z5gld7i.png)

**Chrome Custom Tabs:**

Chrome Custom Tabs, or **CCT**, in turn was introduced to Chrome in version 45. And unlike WebView, instead of looking like a full-screen application, the user will see it as an **Activity** with a custom toolbar. However this customization is **limited** and the user will always see the content URL. And finally, your app will have no access to web state, such as cookie, storage, etc…

![Alt Text](https://thepracticaldev.s3.amazonaws.com/i/50cwkiipkk9hq4qpsfqc.png)

#Cool, so what changes with TWA?

Well, first of all, your TWA will run Chrome in full screen. **And what does that mean?** It means that for the user it is transparent. It will feel like a **native application** is actually running. And this is because of the ability to **verify** that your site and application are **digitally certified** through [**Digital Link Assets**](https://developers.google.com/digital-asset-links/v1/getting-started) (which we talk about in the PWA article), and therefore are reliable.

TWA also has access to **all Chrome features** and can perform certain **features** not possible in WebViews. Some of these features are, for example, push notifications, autofill forms in Chrome, background synchronization, among others.

And just like CCT, a TWA can **share** data stored in Chrome, including cookies, as well as share session states, etc.

#Okay, but when and why use it?

Well, there are several situations, where not necessarily an application is the main product of disclosure of your company. A classic example is **shopping sites**, or market places. The checkout system is often somewhat complex, and is often worth keeping in web format. That's where the **versatility** that TWA brings.

You can work on your native application until you checkout. From there you call your site through **Trusted Web Activities**, perform every checkout operation that already works today, and if you want, go back to the native app to complete the user purchase.

Well, the idea was to really explain a little bit more about what TWA really is, and what its advantages are.


Questions, doubts or suggestions are welcome! Just ping me on Twitter for [**@kimuradev**](http://twitter.com/kimuradev)

See ya!