Home Screen Web Apps Get a Javascript Nitro Boost In iOS 5

In iOS 5, Apple has fixed a long standing issue that prevented home screen web apps from running as fast as they would within Mobile Safari.

You probably remember the issue. Back in March, a company called Blaze hit the headlines claiming that Android 2.3 loaded websites 52% faster than an iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3, which was largely heralded for blisteringly fast web browsing thanks to its new Nitro Javascript engine.

As it turns out, it was all an error. Blaze used their custom web app to run the test, and the version of Safari Apple allows web apps to use in iOS 4.3 had not yet been updated to Nitro. None the less, you’ll still occasionally hear Android fans chirping this dubious statistic to the heavens.

Well, no longer. iOS 5 finally rolls Nitro into Web.app. Now, web apps running from the homescreen will benefit from the same boost that web apps running under Safari enjoy. Good to know.

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