Android vs. iOS: Major Difference between Two Leading Mobile App Development Platforms
To untrained eyes, mobile app development on these two leading platforms- Android and iOS might seem easier. But in reality, these two operating systems have their own traits. There are multiple differences when it comes to Android and iOS, both in terms of practicalities of mobile application development and in the process of creating an app. However, not only technicality impacts that process but also the mobile app design and strategy plays a vital role. To simply put across, the whole mobile app development procedure majorly depends on the operating system one chooses. Only the top mobile application development companies can apparently understand these differences. But let’s take a look at some of the technical differences between these two mobile app development platforms:
1. Programming Language: The basic coding language required for Android app development is Java, whereas for iOS platforms one should know SWIFT and Objective-C. Regardless of the choice of your language, you will get access to the immense web-community of developers for sure, which is beneficial for you. Encountering problems while mobile app development is unpredictable and apparent, but with benefits you will find a quick-fix for your problem in no time.
2. Practiced IDE: Formerly, developers applied Eclipse tool as an environment for Google-backed mobile app development. But recently, Google (the owner of Android) has released multifunctional and unbelievably accessible IDE, which is Android Studio. This platform significantly assists developers to deploy the mobile app development without any hassle. On the other hand, iOS is one step ahead and iOS app developers utilize the Xcode to develop mobile apps on Applebacked mobile apps.
3. Difference in Designing: Here’s a list of designing principle that one should apply according to their chosen platform: Screen sizes and resolutions-iOS devices have two major screen sizes (iPhone/iPad) with three different resolutions. However, Android runs on a plethora of different screen sizes and resolutions respectively. Navigation- Android apps navigation is bar placed to the left whereas iOS places its navigation key to the top. More so, Android offers colorful icons while iOS keeps it navigation in gray or blue color by default. Menu- Android-backed applications usually prefer to have a drawer menu or side/hamburger menu bar that is placed on the top after the tap-and-pull gesture. But iOS keeps it easy by providing a button in the bottom to access the menu, it also provides hamburger menu, but you should customized it accordingly. Alerts and popup- These tabs requires an instant action, so Android users do this by clicking on “Agree/Disagree” or “Allow/block”. But for iOS there are two types of choices- alert or action sheet. Back-button- Apple users don’t have any back-button in reality; they can go back with the top left button. But Google has back button that enable one to visit the previous page or home page directly.
4. Monetization Strategy: This is a very important factor considered by every company. Apple users primarily focus on purchasing apps while Android users truly rely on Support-ads. According to the stats, downloads on two major platforms- Android and iOS- has reached approx.26 billion worldwide leading to app revenue of $16 billion. According to this report, Google is holding the top position as downloading of apps have increased 10% by 2017, whereas Apple’s downloading is increased by 8%.
5. Upgrading Online Mediums: We all come across updates of Apps, but this process is quite time-consuming (require at least two week of wait) when it comes to updating existing online apps on Apple store. This wait can spoil the IT Company’s plan as it delays in releasing the product. What we can assume about Android? Well, on Android platform, developers can update the app every two hours so if you’ve proficient and adaptive Android testers team, you can deploy the project in a short turnaround time.
6. Bugs and Fixes: No matter which platform you choose for your mobile app, create an app without any bug or error is impossible. In iOS platform, you have to wait for couple of days for publishing your app online, which apparently reduces the chances of bugs as you can immediately change before it’s published. And for Android developers can develop and published the app within two hours, which increases the chances of bugs. However, Google has introduced a special Bouncer System that analyzes your app and if it finds any harmful or irrelevant information it will be removed by Google immediately.
7. Cost of Development: Well, it is significant that businesses should first finalize the platform as per their business needs and ask your mobile app development service provider to give you an estimation of the cost. But the fact is, the cost of your app completely on the time it will consume. The higher the time for developing an app, more the money it will require.
8. App Store Optimization: App store optimization is not different whether you’re developing on iOS or Android platform. But it helps to rank your app on the top in the App store. Therefore, it is imperative to give attention to the title and description of apps in order to optimize your apps well and increase the number of downloads.
Final Thoughts: If you’re facing difficulties in choosing the right operating system for your mobile app development, then we would suggest you to evaluate your needs and prepare a checklist, keeping in the mind the above-mentioned differences. Once you’re done with it, get in touch with AppClues Infotech a leading mobile application development company in USA providing various mobile app services to businesses worldwide.