title: Ionic build: difference between --prod and --release flags?
body: <p>When running an <code>ionic build</code> I'm curious as to the difference between the <code>--prod</code> and <code>--release</code> flags?</p>
  
  <p>The <a href="https://ionicframework.com/docs/cli/cordova/build/" rel="noreferrer">Ionic build docs</a> state:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p><strong>--prod</strong>    Build the application for production<br>
    <strong>--release</strong> Create a Cordova release build</p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>and while the <a href="https://cordova.apache.org/docs/en/latest/reference/cordova-cli/#cordova-prepare-command" rel="noreferrer">Cordova CLI ref</a> doesn't mention a <code>--prod</code> flag, it states the following for <code>--release</code>:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p>Perform a release build. This typically translates to release mode for
    the underlying platform being built.</p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>Looking at the difference in the build output, building with <code>--prod</code> seems to run an <strong>Ionic</strong> 'production' build, in that it also runs the <code>ngc</code> and <code>uglify</code> (which itself runs <code>cleancss</code>) tasks.</p>
  
  <p>And when I run a build with <code>--release</code>, I seem to get a <strong>Cordova</strong> release build, which (per the docs) attempts to run a release build on whatever platform you're targeting.</p>
  
  <p>Are those the only differences, or am I over-simplifying?</p>
  
  <p>For reference, note the following output APK filesizes:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li>Prod flag: 9.8 MB</li>
  <li>Release flag: 11.7 MB</li>
  <li>Prod + Release flags: 8.9 MB</li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>I'm using the latest (ATTOW) version of the Ionic Framework (3.9.2) and CLI (3.20.0).</p>