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Probably getting a great app idea is not that tough, however finding an appropriate approach for implementing it, is easier said than done. Despite the task of selecting a right source to get your app developed; a mobile app development company or a developer, another most significant job is to opt for a precise technology platform.
There are many alternatives for mobile app design and development approaches like you can either build a native iOS app, Android app, responsive web app or a cross-platform app. If you decide to build an app for only one platform due to the limited budget, definitely you have to lose half of the potential users. This way, each platform comes with certain pros and cons; although at the end of the day the choice is all yours.
Surely, the prerequisite to make this complicated decision is to know a bit about the various technology choices available. This will help you to converse the options with your Mobile App Development agency or developer.
Lets have a quick look at some of the effective mobile app development technologies that you can go for:
Native App Development
A Native app is one which is built on a single platform like Android, iOS, BlackBerry OS or Windows phone.
If you need to create an app for Android, it will necessitate learning Java. As Java has a less learning curve and is a common language, its not that difficult to get expert developers. Further, the tools like Android Studio, Eclipse are available to build robust and high-quality Android apps with fewer efforts.
Apart from this, for creating iOS apps your developers will require expertise in the Objective-C language which is quite complicated, programming languages. The relief is Apple offers its developer community with useful tools like Xcode to make native apps.
Windows phone app development is greatly supported by Microsoft and it is recognized as best for making an enterprise app. Building an app for Windows Phone generally requires knowledge of C# or VB.NET languages. Microsoft offers a great tool called Visual Studio for making an app.
Pros
Has aptitude to optimize the user experience
Runs smoothly and quickly, since designed particularly for one platform
No limitations for advanced user interface customization
Cons
Have to start everything from scratch, when want to develop and launch the app for more than one platform
No code can be shared between the different versions of separate apps
When To Select Native App Development?
If you want to make a complex app where the user experience is the key element
If the app needs heavy data processing
Web App Development
Web apps are basically categorized as responsive, traditional, and adaptive apps. Traditional web apps generally comprise any website.
A responsive web app is the one that requires a special mobile app design so that it can suit a mobile device like iPhone or tablet on which it appears.
On the contrary, an adaptive web app doesnt require altering its design. It will show the same design, although it will adjust to suit the diverse screen sizes of any mobile device.
Pros
The startup, support and maintenance, cost is much lesser than a native approach
Skilled developers are readily available since the web apps are developed with the most popular programming languages
Cons
The performance will be much slower as compare to native app
User experience wont match a mobile app that users are expecting
When To Select Web App Development
If require comparatively simple interactions
If you have a taut budgets
Majority of data processing of the app can be done on the server
Hybrid App Development
Hybrid mobile apps are basically cross-platform apps but provide the user interface using an embedded web browser and languages like HTML, Javascript, and CSS. HTML5 hybrid apps are built with Trigger.IO, Ionic Framework, Cordova, and Telerik Platform.
Pros
Code can be shared between various versions of the apps across devices
Faster development time, as the core part of the app is built using web technologies
The core of the app can be updated devoid of going through the AppStore
Cons
Some native code may need to be written, as not all code can be shared
As interaction is done via the embedded web-browser control, the speed can be impacted
Less reliable, fast, or smooth as compared to native apps
When To Select Hybrid App Development?
If your app will mostly deliver content
If its essential for the app to be cross-platform for business outcome
Conclusion
With the technology advancement, the mobile app development platforms will also continue to evolve and thereby making a correct decision is going to be even tougher. What you need to do is, stick to your strategy and recognize your market, the performance requirements, and last but not the least, your budget.
