Native App Development vs Cross Platform App Development - Which is Right For Your Business?
An Essential Overview of Native App Development & Cross Platform App Development For Business
Before You Build Your App
Before your app can even get out of the development gate, you will come to a fork in the road that will force you to make a decision that will affect your user experience long-term. The fork in the road is having to decide between native app development or the cross platform app development.
Choose correctly and you will enhance the overall user experience (UX) and help to drive more targeted traffic to your business.
To help you to decide which of these two is right for your business, we need to look at the benefits of each so you will be in a better position to decide today.
Native App Development
The native app development is the application program designed to be used on one particular device or platform.
Also known as native apps, they are written for one specific platform and will easily interact with all the operating system features or other types of software that will be installed on this platform.
This is a development process that makes use of every feature easily for the design team. The reason that many programmers and developers prefer the native apps process is because the application is written in the programming language that will be specific for that platform only. The most common languages that developers will use is the Java for Android devices and the Swift or Objective-C for the Apple devices.
To get a better understanding of how these application works in real-time, one only needs to look at the extremely popular Angry Bird or Instagram apps. These are both native applications and simplistic on the surface, but highly functional depending on the mobile device.
When making use of native applications, developers can incorporate app-defined or standard operating gestures. This type of development process can make use of the device's notification system and has the ability to work offline too.
Enhance Your Users Experience
With native app development, this is a faster and more reliable platform that is more responsive to the user. Users are all about speed when they use their mobile devices, any hiccups or hangups can ruin the overall user experience.
When utilising native app development - your app can tap into other functions within the device, such as compass, camera, microphone, or swiping gestures.
If the developer chooses native app development, push notifications can be used to alert the user of new content, new upgrades, or whenever you want to get the user to take a certain call to action.
Of both types of app development, native app development seems to be on the rise year to year as it is growing in popularity on many fronts.
Cross Platform App Development
To get a better understanding about what is cross platform development, it is designing software or services that can easily run on multiple platforms or a variety of software environments.
Developers and engineers will need to use a large amount of different methods to ensure the app functions well on different operating systems for a single product.
When it comes to cross platform development, the most common and universal of languages is java, an intermediate language category.
The Challenges of Cross Platform Development
Make no mistake about it, this is the more challenging processes for developers because it needs to work on Windows, Linux, Mac, and more. Most engineers will employ one of two developing methods, compiling an executable program into an operating environment or using an intermediate language and then compiling only once.
With the cross platform development, obviously you are going to get a greater reach because you cover more applications and platforms. Developing the app that can run on Android and iPhone is a huge advantage when your competition only has one. With this type of development, you have the potential to tap into a greater market.
The Advantages of Cross Platform Development
Perhaps the biggest advantage to the cross platform development is when changes are needed to be made. Once the change has been deployed by the development team, it immediately synchs to all the platforms and devices instantly.
Of course, when you have developed the app to run on all those platforms and devices, it tends to look more uniform because there is only a single code running in the background for them all.
With cross platform development, if you’re using Appcelerator, your team can easily then code HTML5 and convert for a variety of mobile platforms. You will be using resources you already have and converting them for future deployment across a number of different platforms.
When it comes to saving money, you can expect reduced development costs when using the cross platform development method.
When you are custom designing the application, there are unlimited amounts of tools out there that can to make the process easier. Tools like Unity, Rhonmobile, Ramp, PhoneGap, Open Plug, and Grapple, make the task much easy for you. When you are custom designing the application, you need all the help you can get in differences in tools and languages for each platform’s API.
An Effective App Design is Crucial For Success
As far as cross platform development, developers will need to be able to work together to figure out a solution so that the diverse screen layouts of the iPhone and Android are not an issue. Creating an app design that looks great on all devices can be a challenge, but most developers are up to this task.
As far as platform integration with cross platform development, it might appear on the surface that integrating preferences, local settings, and notifications can be problematic at the beginning. Utilizing cloud options should eliminate these concerns and allow the development process to continue without real issues.
Work With A Trusted App Development Team
- Discuss Your App Idea and Your Goals
When it comes to native app development vs cross platform app development, now you should have a better idea which is right for your business. The right app development team will help you determine which is the best choice for your app, and your budget.
By taking the time to look at both alternatives, you can get a better understanding how to approach the project long-term. This is not a set-it and forget-it space, modifications and tweaking are part of an ongoing process.
The ultimate goal is to learn more about your app's users, and how you can meet their needs to deliver the ultimate app experience across all devices.
Do you have an App Idea?
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Get to know Saul Edmonds & Roundhouse
As Creative Director & Roundhouse Founder Saul Edmonds has over 20 years professional design and digital experience.
He is an international expert on Brand, Website and App Development. He has worked with clients across all industry groups - including startups, small business, government and entrepreneurs - on projects of all sizes and budgets.
Saul and his team can help you grow your business and discover new possibilities with :
- strategic brand design
- web design & development
- app design and development
- digital marketing
- creative engagement
Saul Edmonds believes that every project begins with a story.
Saul and his team offer a one to one, tailored service - wherehe works with you closely to develop innovative solutions that will take your business to the next level.
Find out how Saul can help you turn your ideas into reality.
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email : us@roundhouse.cc
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