Mobile Apps Development Made Easy
Development is building efficient application software for small, wireless computing devices such as smartphones or tablets. Mobile application development often has many challenges because it requires the mobile applications development company to provide solutions for different devices and operating systems, and also for the varied device features their respective screen sizes. Developing mobile applications requires considering the characteristics and constraints of these devices. Mobile devices don´t have as powerful processors as personal computers, they have a wide array of screen sizes and more features like camera and location detection. Mobile Application Development Companies also must consider the diverse hardware specifications and configurations because of intense contention in mobile software and varieties within each of the platforms.
Atlogys is a fast-growth mobile application development company. Our company has specialization in developing mobile applications for iOS (Apple Devices) on iOS 7.x and iOS 8.x and Android 4.x and 5.x for both phones and tablets.
iOS Application Development
iOS application development is the process by which Mobile Application Development Companies create new applications for the family of iOS operating system Devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod) by Apple.
A range of Native iOS Application Development Services from Atlogys include (but not limited to):
- iPhone App Development
- iPad App Development
- iOS App UI/UX Design and Interactivity.
- iOS Games Development
- iOS App Testing & Validation.
- iOS App Backend Development
- Backend compatibility with previous IOS software versions
- iOS software Migration from iOS 7.x to 8.x and so on
- iOS App Maintenance Services
Android Application Development
Android application development is the process by which Mobile Application Development Companies create new applications for the Android operating system from Google. Native Android mobile applications are in general developed in the Java programming language using the Android Software Development Kit (SDK), but other mobile development environments are also available in non-native a.k.a Hybrid mode.
As of Jan 2015, more than one million mobile applications have been developed for Android, with over 30 billion downloads. Research suggested that over 67% of mobile developers used the platform.
Today, there are approximately 5 billion people being connected to the internet via mobile devices and the popularity of mobile applications has continued to climb, as their utilization has become progressively dominant across mobile phone users. A May 2012 comScore study accounted that during the previous quarter, more mobile subscribers used mobile apps than browsed the web on their devices.
Mobile Application Stores
Mobile Application Developers can project and publish their applications on the various mobile stores, where they get a revenue share on their app selling price. An example is Apple’s App Store, which is for iOS mobile apps only. There are more or less 700,000 iOS Applications. Google’s Android Market (now known as the “Play Store”) has many apps running on devices having Android OS.
Platforms and Tools in Mobile Application Development
There are different ways of developing Mobile Applications and at Atlogys we can make any of the types of mobile apps below:
- Native Mobile Applications A native application is created for use on a native platform like mobile and tablets using the native SDK’ which are specific to that platform released by the maker of the platform.
- Mobile Web Applications are server-side apps to access website/s on mobile/tablets using different browsers like Chrome, Firefox by connecting to a wireless network or mobile network.
- Hybrid Mobile Applications are combinations of native app and web app. Hybrid mobile apps run on devices or offline and are written utilizing web technologies like HTML5 and CSS.
Mobile Application Platform and tools permit mobile application developers to write, test and deploy applications into the target platform environment. Each platform is unique and demonstrates different behaviours, features, and capabilities.
Native iOS Development
The iOS SDK
The iOS SDK formerly iPhone SDK (Software Development Kit) is a software development kit developed by Apple Inc. to develop native mobile applications for the iOS family of products.
The iOS SDK allows mobile application developers to make mobile applications for the iPhone and iPad and provides “iPhone simulator” as well to test them. However, successfully deploying a mobile application onto the devices is only possible after bearing an iOS Developer Program fee, which is $99.00 USD per year. Xcode is the mobile application development environment for the iOS SDK. iPhone/iPad applications, like OS X applications, are written in Objective-C and Swift, with the ability that some elements of the application can also be written in C or C++.
XCode
Majority of mobile applications in Apple’s App Store are written in the Objective-C programming language, and mobile application developers usually use Xcode to develop their mobile applications.
Obtaining The Tools
To build an iOS mobile app, you must use Mac OS X and any other operating systems are not supported. The development tools that you’ll require are iOS X SDK and Xcode which are free of charge, and you can run the mobile app that you build in the iOS simulator, which is part of the iOS SDK.
Swift
Swift is a new programming language for iOS and OS X mobile apps that build on C and Objective-C, without the constraints of C compatibility.
Swift’s neat slate, backed by the mature and much-loved Cocoa and Cocoa Touch frameworks follow safe programming patterns and adds advanced features to make mobile application programming simple, flexible, and fun.
Android App Development
Google’s Android Developers portal has tons of tools, guides, and useful information. The SDK, mobile application development tools, and emulators are all accessible for free with tons of examples and tutorials on the site.
Android SDK
The Android SDK (software development kit) includes a comprehensive set of mobile application development tools. These include libraries, a handset emulator, a debugger, sample code, documentation, and tutorials. Currently supported development platforms include computers running Linux, Mac, and Windows. Also, Android mobile applications can be developed on Android itself by using specified Android applications.
Cross Operating-system Platforms for mobile app development
Cross-Operating System platforms for mobile apps development, on the whole, are not yet an entirely perfect solution. Fortunately, there are few really great multi-platform mobile developer tools in the market which can serve us to achieve our objective of writing a mobile app once and having it run on both iOS as well as Android family of devices. Please check below few of the top mobile application development tools for cross-platform mobile applications development that can support demands for both current and future projects.
- PhoneGapPhoneGap is a mobile application development framework which enables application developers to build applications for mobile devices using HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS3. PhoneGap enables wrapping up of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS3 depending upon the platform of the device instead of relying on platform-specific APIs like those in iOS, Android or Windows Phone. Mixing native and hybrid code snippets have been possible since version 1.9.
- AppceleratorAppcelerator′s Titanium caters a unified JavaScript API (across devices), coupled with native-platform-specific features. Mobile Application Developers write JavaScript and utilize a UI abstraction that results in the use of native UI components, greatly assisting UI performance compared to other hybrid options.
- Adobe AIRAdobe AIR is a cross-operating-system runtime that facilitates mobile application developers to combine HTML, JavaScript, Adobe Flash, ActionScript and Flex technologies in deploying rich Internet applications (RIAs) on devices including desktop computers, netbooks, tablets, and smartphones.
- SenchaSencha Touch is a user interface (UI) JavaScript library, or framework, specifically built for the Mobile Web Applications and fully based on web standards such as HTML5, JavaScript CSS3. Sencha Touch aims to facilitate mobile application developers to rapidly and easily create HTML5 based mobile applications that run on Android, iOS, Windows and BlackBerry devices.
- QtQt (“Cute”) is a cross-platform mobile application development tool that targets several embedded, mobile and desktop platforms. Mobile Application Developers write code applying QML, touted as a CSS & JavaScript like language and applications are backed with a broad set of C++ libraries, and utilize UI/graphics components written in C++.
Custom Mobile Application
Custom Mobile Application development is the process of making a mobile application that is particularly developed for a specific organization or user. Since a custom mobile application is developed for a single customer it can meet that customer’s expectations and preferences. Custom Mobile Application may be designed in a staged process, allowing all aspects, risks, and dangers to be considered along with all stories from the custom mobile app specifications.
Atlogys team can create almost any type of custom mobile application, from a simple mobile application that displays information about your business, to custom social and E-commerce functionality including content management, inventory management, customer management (CRM apps), human resource management etc., recruitment, social networking, ePublishing, medical adherence apps, hosting and hospitality industries and verticals.
Mobile applications have earlier provided speedy access to email, contacts, calendar, weather information and the stock market. However, public demand and the accessibility of developer tools has forced rapid expansion into other categories and at Atlogys we can cater to your custom mobile app development need for mobile-games, social-media, picture- sharing, location-based services, networking and file transfer, banking, education, video- streaming, order tracking, ticket purchases apps.
Mobile Application Testing
Mobile application testing is a process by which mobile applications developed for mobile devices are tested for their usability, functionality, and consistency under diverse environments like online/offline mode. Mobile application testing can be automated or manual.
At Atlogys, we have done many kinds of mobile testing and summarizing our experience below:
Major Challenges in Mobile Application Testing
- Variety of Mobile Devices – Mobile devices comes in different screen sizes, input methods (touch, normal and QWERTY) with different hardware capabilities. Apple has 3.5 inches, 4 inch, 7.9 inch, 9.7 inch and more device types. Android screens are divided into small, normal, large, xlarge with various dpi’s . Android phones have ldpi, mdpi, hdpi, xhdpi, xxhdpi, xxxhdpi. Their screen sizes range from 2 inches to anything till about 10 inches.
- Diversity in Mobile Platforms/Operating Systems – Mobile Devices come with various Mobile Operating System, the major ones are Android, IOS, Symbian, Windows, and BlackBerry. Each operating system has its own constraints. Testing a single mobile application across multiple devices running on the same platform and every platform poses a unique challenge. Apple, for example, has iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPad Air, iPad Air 2, IPad Mini 2, iPad Mini3, iPad Mini, iPad 2, iPad 3. Each of these devices may have any version of iOS 7.x (like 7.0, 7.1, 7.2) or a version of iOS8.x (like 8.1, 8.0.1, 8.0.2). Similarly Android has much different hardware from Samsung, Lenovo, Motorola, Micromax, lava, Gionee etc. in the market and software versions include Ice cream sandwich, Jellybean, KitKat, LollyPop in different configurations.
- Mobile network operators – There are approximately 400 mobile network operators in the world, out of which some are GSM, some CDMA, whereas others use a less common network. Each network operator uses a different kind of network infrastructure and this limits the flow of information. Mobile apps may or may not be dependent on an active internet connection. In cases of an intermittent network, testing the devices becomes even a harder challenge. Any packet of data being downloaded to a mobile app must resume from where it left off in case of a broken connection.
- Scripting- The variety of mobile devices makes executing the test script (Scripting) a key challenge. As mobile devices differ in input methods, keystrokes, menu structure and display properties.
Types of Mobile Application Testing
- Functional Testing – Functional testing ensures that the application is working as per the functional requirements. Most of the test carried on for this is driven by the user interface and information flows. We make end to end functional test cases in form of user stories which are also reviewed and approved by the client to ensure 100% acceptance criteria.
- Laboratory Testing – Laboratory testing, generally undertaken by mobile network carriers, is done by simulating the complete wireless network. This test is executed to find out any issues when a mobile application uses voice and/or data connection to do some functions.
- Performance Testing – Performance testing process is carried out to check the behaviour and performance of the application under certain conditions such as bad network coverage, low available memory, low battery, simultaneous access to application’s server by concurrent users and other conditions. Performance of an application can be affected from application’s server side or client’s side and Performance testing are carried out to check both.
- Memory Leakage Testing – Memory leakage happens when the mobile application is unable to manage the memory it is allocated resulting in poor performance of the application. As mobile devices have substantial constraints of available memory, memory leakage testing is essential for the proper functioning of a mobile application.
- Interrupt Testing – A mobile application while functioning may face various interruptions like incoming calls or network coverage outage. The different types of interruptions are:
- Incoming and Outgoing SMS and MMS
- Incoming and Outgoing calls
- Incoming Notifications
- Media Player on/off
- Battery Removal
- Cable Insertion and Removal for data transfer
- Network outage and recovery
- Device Power cycle
A mobile application should be able to address all these interruptions by going into a suspended state and resuming afterward.
- Usability testing – Usability testing is undertaken to affirm if the application is accomplishing its objectives and getting a favourable response from end users. Mobile Application Usability testing is important as the usability of an application is its key to commercial success.
- Installation testing – Many mobile applications come pre-installed on the device whereas others must be installed from the app store. Installation testing verifies that the installation process goes smoothly and covers installation, updating and uninstalling an application.
- Certification Testing – Certification Testing carried out to get a certificate of compliance, each mobile device calls for testing against the guidelines set by different mobile platforms.
Some Mobile Application Testing Tools Atlogys uses
Some Testing tools that are being used to test code quality for mobile applications are as follows:
Cross-Platform (Android and iOS)
For Android
For iPhone
- Clang Static Analyzer – An open source tool for running static analysis for iPhone code (http://clang-analyzer.llvm.org/)
- Analyze code from XCode – done during compile time
Mobile Application Testing Strategy at Atlogys
The Mobile Application Test strategy should make sure that all the performance and quality guidelines are met. The testing team must have the right devices in the desired software operating systems with the right configurations and sandbox user accounts to test. All 8 *types* of mobile application testing mentioned above must be carried out. A few pointers in this area are:
- Selection of the devices – Analyze the mobile device market and choose the devices that are widely used.
- Emulators – The use of Emulators is extremely useful in the development stage, as they allow quick and efficient checking of the mobile application. An emulator is a system that runs software from one environment to another without altering the software itself. Types of Mobile Emulators
- Device Emulator- provided by device manufacturers
- Browser Emulator- simulates mobile browser environments.
- Operating systems Emulator- Apple provides emulators for iPhones, Google for Android phones and Microsoft for Windows phones.
List of few free and easy to use mobile device emulators used at Atlogys
Atlogys transforms your ideas into Applications
Conceptualizing and Strategy
At Atlogys we help build cost-efficient and turnkey iOS, and Android mobile applications in both native and hybrid mode. Our technology leads, application developers, QA (software quality assurance) testers and system administrators are trained to deliver the best solution keeping in mind the latest guidelines, best practices and rules of the various mobile app submission stores like Apple and Google.
What Mobile Applications Do We Develop?
We have done end-to-end, full turnkey design, implementation, and deployment for many mobile applications that are custom and also state-of-the-art, we have been a trusted technology partner for Fortune 500 clients as well as for firms listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. There is 15+ apps live and running on the Google Play store and the Apple App store.
Our Deliverables
- Full Mobile App specifications and User stories
- App Wireframes and UI Screens
- Application Code with full adherence to guidelines, code practices, and design patterns
- Test cases with complete checklist of all passing suite
- Submission to App store
- Support in-app review from Apple / Google
Why Atlogys?
Your existing web development team may not always be the natural best extension to also make your mobile application. It requires different levels of skills, know-how and technical insight to make a cutting-edge scalable mobile app. Good web engineers may not be able to make good mobile apps.
Atlogys is an ex-google founded software engineering company with world-class technocrats (from Microsoft, Google, IIT Delhi) who give your personal attention to your mobile and web app.
- At Atlogys we understand *mobile*.
- We have experience in dealing with the day to day changing guidelines of apple and android both, along with full compliance with all app submission rules and terms.
- We are well -versed in mobile applications design and data guidelines.
- Our mobile application developers know mobile development SDK and we have rich experience in optimizing code for the small devices given the constraints that exist in screen sizes, less CPU, limited battery and intermittent connectivity.
- We perform rigorous application testing and have experience in making both native and hybrid apps.
You can read more about the USP and benefits of working with Atlogys.
