Reviewers see Capacitor as a practical way to ship existing web apps to iOS and Android without rebuilding the UI in React Native or Flutter. They value keeping one web codebase, then adding small custom plugins when native features are needed, including timing-sensitive controls and device-specific capabilities. A second reviewer says it worked well for turning a simple HTML canvas game into an App Store release. The main caveats are familiar mobile release work in Xcode and App Store tools, plus extra effort profiling WebView performance on low-end Android devices.
NeuroDual is a single React + Vite codebase that ships to the web, Android and iOS through Capacitor. When we need to go native, writing our own plugin is straightforward: handwriting recognition, high refresh rate, immersive mode, thermal monitoring and a few timing-critical controls each live as a small custom plugin next to the web code.
What needs improvement
Profiling WebView performance on low-end Android phones still takes some effort; better built-in tooling for frame timing would help.
vs Alternatives
We looked at React Native and Flutter. Capacitor let us keep one web UI, and the web version of the app, instead of maintaining a second UI layer for mobile.
I had a canvas game in a single HTML file and needed it on the App Store without rewriting it natively. That's exactly the job it did, and it's a real one - the alternative was learning Swift or shipping nothing. Worth knowing it removes the rewrite, not the release: you're still in Xcode, signing, and App Store Connect afterwards.
Capacitor allowed as to use the same codebase as our web and desktop platforms, and having to write almost no native code along the way. That way, we can reuse and share vast amounts of components and functions between our different platforms and not write any duplicate code – it's magic!
