Introduction to Cross-Platform Mobile App Development
The iOS versus Android debate originally came to light when Android became one of the most well known and broadly utilized standard mobile platforms.
As indicated by Statista, together, Google Android and Apple iOS represent 99% of the worldwide mobile OS market share.
At first, mobile app developers focused on planning native applications (platform-specific) that were not utilitarian on different systems. This is the way cross-platform mobile app development came to play.
Today, mobile app market trends are continually changing and advancing, driving a developing interest in imaginative mobile apps. Consequently, organizations and brands must target users of various gadgets and operating frameworks.
This need to catch the consideration of users of different platforms is pushing mobile app development companies to move to cross-platform mobile app development.
On account of cross-platform mobile app development, you can extend your reach to users of numerous operating frameworks. It guarantees that brands don’t pass up any significant user bases.
What is cross-platform development?
Both iOS and Android platforms offer native applications that guarantee exceptional functionalities and user experiences. Basically, native apps are applications intended to run on explicit mobile platforms.
Unfortunately, native applications have certain disadvantages. Since native app development centers around creating specific (unique) features for a particular OS, developers need to make updates and changes for individual elements. The whole process becomes both time and cost-intensive and furthermore diminishes development speed.
Cross-platform mobile app development solves these challenges. In simple words, it encourages the creation of applications that can run flawlessly over different platforms.
Here, developers compose the code in one language and afterward assemble it for various platforms utilizing their separate native libraries. Accordingly, a single code works for various operating frameworks.
Cross-platform mobile app development is an adaptable and profoundly cost-proficient alternative for mobile app development firms.
Why opt for cross-platform mobile app development?
As we referenced before, cross-platform mobile app development lessens the time and expenses related to developing mobile apps for various platforms. Here are X advantages that cross-platform mobile app development offers:
1. Language stack
The cross-platform language stack includes languages like Java, C#, C++, JavaScript, and Ruby. Developers utilize these popular programming languages on platforms like Apache Cordova, Xamarin, Unity, Sencha, React Native, and NativeScript, to give some examples.
The set norm and approaches related to this language and tech stack make cross-platform mobile app development straightforward, smooth, and flexible.
2. Code reusability
This is probably the best advantage of cross-platform mobile app development. You can make only one codebase for numerous operating frameworks, eliminating the requirement for composing platform-specific code.
You need not compose specific actions or successions for individual platforms. Instead, you can compose a general code and reuse just about 50-70% of the code for various platforms.
3. Hot reloading
The tech stack for cross-platform development guarantees a top-notch developer experience. Hot reloading is one such component that permits developers to consolidate new changes (features or versions of files edited during runtime) while the application is running.
Thus, you’re rolling out the improvements to the UI, the page won’t refresh, and the application state will stay intact. Hot reloading helps spare a ton of time.
4. Over the air updates
Cross-platform mobile app development encourages the conveyance of over-the-air (OTA) updates. The OTA feature permits developers to consistently send upgraded versions (with new highlights and resources) of applications to the users.
They need not build and re-submit another independent application for each new update. Consequently, users can get application updates anytime and anywhere. The upgrade occurs in the background, without hampering the ease of use of the application.
5. Quick product launch
On account of the write-once-run-anywhere (WORA) approach, it productively lessens the application development time. Developers design cross-platform apps as single projects with support for various operating systems.
Since everything lies consolidated in one place, you can get a cross-platform application running instantly. From origination and prototyping to development, testing, and market release, things move incredibly quickly.
6. Development Cost
With regards to costs, cross-platform development can be 30% less expensive than native application improvement. The single codebase and code reusability features help to cut down development costs altogether.
It disposes of the for investing in resources and abilities needed for individual platforms. Developers can make an application viable with multiple platforms by reusing pieces constantly of a similar code.
7. UI iterations
In cross-platform mobile app development, a heft of UI components is the equivalent over multiple platforms. This takes into consideration consistency in the essential attributes of the application. Normally, the UI iterations make for a fantastic, smooth, and pleasant user experience.
In cross-platform development, developers can keep the overall design and feel of the application uniform across various operating frameworks.
8. Code inspections
Cross-platform mobile app development makes the process of code inspection substantially more sensible. Developers can perform extensive testing for cross-platform apps to contemplate their conduct in various conditions.
If the code inspection process distinguishes any bugs or issues with the UI and application execution, developers can just roll out the changes in the common codebase. In this way, there’s no compelling reason to compose separate unit tests for individual frameworks.
To conclude
Cross-platform app development sure has various advantages. Nonetheless, it is fundamental to recognize that it isn’t the befitting choice for all cases.
For example, for mobile apps that require exceptionally platform-specific functionalities and features, native app development is the ideal decision.
Conflictingly, cross-platform development is the most reasonable choice for new businesses/small to mid-sized firms that have restricted monetary and human resources.
AUTHOR BIO
Radhika Sethi is a tech enthusiast with a specialization in Digital Marketing. She is passionate about technology, internet marketing, big data, and writing.
Currently working in a Mobile App Development Agency. Reading novels, traveling, researching new online marketing trends are some of her areas of interest that keep her rejuvenated.
