Re: [w3c/manifest] Way to detect if a web app is installed (Issue #1092)

raad-altaie left a comment (w3c/manifest#1092)

**@benfrancis** I’ve read through the whole thread and I still don’t see a strong technical reason why `navigator.standalone` can’t be standardized.

The main objection seems to be around the ambiguity of the name and a few edge cases—like some sites using it to detect iOS/iPad PWA installs. But that doesn't feel like a blocker:

- Those compatibility concerns seem relatively minor, especially compared to the clear utility of being able to reliably detect if the app is running in a standalone window.
- Safari’s implementation works well and is widely used by developers today.
- The alternative—using `matchMedia('(display-mode: standalone)')`—is not reliable (breaks in fullscreen mode), has no JS fallback for environments without full CSS support, and shows inconsistent support across platforms.

At the end of the day, this is a simple, practical flag developers want. If it behaves consistently (returns `true` when running in a PWA context, and `false` otherwise), that’s what matters.

This still seems like a missed opportunity for a low-friction interoperability win.



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