Ben Franklin famously said, “I would have written a shorter letter, but I didn’t have the time.” I sometimes paraphrase that quote to “I would have produced a mobile web site, but created an app instead…”

We’ve been thinking a lot about mobile apps vs. mobile optimized web sites. With the advent of HTML 5 and fast adaptation by all the  major players (i.e. Google, Microsoft, Firefox), it seems like the days of an overcrowded iPhone/iPad/Android home screen are numbered.  Sure, there still places where an app makes sense, such as Epocrates or MapMyRide but for the most part, many apps could and should be replaced by a functional web site. A good example is the NY Times iPhone app. At first it seems like a good idea – content formatted for the device, but when constant refreshes still don’t download the latest news and a perfectly functional web site would, then the app gets deleted. Amtrak for once, has done the right thing and has an excellent mobile optimized web site. For the most part, travel and news sites should be mobile optimized web sites. Slate, has done a tremendous job optimizing their site for iPad users. No download necessary, no asking Apple for permission to update, no waiting hours for breaking news to appear on the home screen.

How long will it take for major players to realize that creating an app for every platform is a waste of valuable time? Time that could be spent creating killer content. We don’t think that long.