Different Types Of Mobile Apps
There are plenty of considerations
when it comes to designing and developing mobile applications. Mobile
applications can be broadly classified into two different types based on the
mobile development technology employed to create them. These are native mobile
applications and hybrid mobile applications. Both types can help
achieve similar results or perform similar functions but are inherently
different in development. Let us understand a bit more about native mobile
applications and web-based mobile applications
For the most part, mobile devices run one of two operating
systems: iOS and Android. iOS is developed and supported by Apple and is used
on only on their own iPhones and iPads. In other words, in the Apple universe,
they control both the hardware and the software.
Android is developed and supported by Google, often considered a
more open platform compared to Apple. In fact, Android is an open source
operating system, which means that anyone can use their code to run a device.
Native Apps
Native apps live on the device and are accessed through icons
on the device home screen. Native apps are installed through an
application store (such as Google Play or Apple’s App Store). They are
developed specifically for one platform, and can take full advantage of all the
device features — they can use the camera, the GPS, the accelerometer, the
compass, the list of contacts, and so on. They can also
incorporate gesture (either standard operating-system gestures or
new, app-defined gestures). And native apps can use the
device’s notifications system and can work offline.
Main advantage of native apps is high
performance and ensuring good user experience as developers use native device
UI. Moreover, an access to wide range of APIs that puts no limitation on app usage.
Native applications are distinctly accessible from app stores of their kind and
have the clear tendency to reach target customers.
They offer the fastest, most reliable and most responsive
experience to users. This is unlikely to change in favor of web apps.
Some cons to native apps are higher
cost compared to other types of apps – due to the need of create app duplicates
for other platforms, separate support and maintenance for different types of
apps resulting in bigger product price.
Hybrid Apps
Hybrid mobile applications are built in a similar manner as
websites. Both use a combination of technologies like HTML, CSS, and
JavaScript. However, instead of targeting a mobile browser, hybrid applications
target a WebView hosted inside a native container. This enables them to do
things like access hardware capabilities of the mobile device.
That’s one of the main appeals of a hybrid app: you build it
once and then you release it across multiple platforms. One UI – nice and
simple. Additionally, you do not have to maintain two different code bases.
With a hybrid application, unless a company adds a completely new
feature that dramatically changes the user experience, the user doesn’t
need to update the app in the app store. If the update in question is on a page
that is loaded from the server, as the user navigates through your app they
will instantly see the update. It’s that simple.