The Future of Mobile App Development
In today’s society mobile phones and apps are inseparable tools we humans use in our day-to-day lives. The development of these tools stem from a collaboration of many companies, Google, Facebook, and Apple just to name a few. This industry can be defined as the mobile apps industry.
The mobile apps industry has experienced nearly unprecedented growth. The unique aspects of the industry are discussed in terms of how they have encouraged the widespread popularity of smartphones and other mobile devices and have transformed electronic gaming, internet retailing, and social networking.
As major competitors in this arena, Apple and Google have endeavoured to distinguish themselves in terms of their relationships with app developers, numbers and uniqueness of apps available, as well as the marketplaces in which the apps are sold. While these battles are waged, others (Blackberry RIM, Facebook, and Amazon) have continued to find their loyal users and niches in the market. Forecasts unanimously paint a very bright future for the industry.
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What are the trends in this industry?
In 2020, there were 24.5 million software developers worldwide. The number of developers is expected to grow in the coming years, especially due to the rise of app and web development in the growing digital age. according to a 2021 developer survey these are the following trends within the industry:
• 87% of the interviewed developers develop for Andriod
• 60% of the interviewed developers develop for IOS
• 3% of the interviewed developers develop for other operating systems
This makes Android the most popular operating system to develop for followed by IOS. Looking at the statics we can also conclude that a good amount of the developers develop for both IOS and Android. For these type of developers Cross-Platform frameworks could be very interesting tools for development.
Which Cross-platform frameworks are the most popular and why?
Simply put, cross-platform mobile frameworks are used to generate an app that is accessible through a large number of various end devices. A single code (like Google ’s Dart code) is used across multiple platforms for easy portability, and in the end the cost of software development is kept low. With cross-platform mobile frameworks, there is the possibility of maximum exposure to the target audience. For example, a single app can target both iOS and Android platforms, which maximizes the app’s reach.
Flutter is the most popular cross-platform mobile framework used by global developers, according to a 2021 developer survey. Based on the survey, 42 percent of software developers use Flutter. On the whole, roughly one third of mobile developers use cross-platform technologies or frameworks; the rest of mobile developers use native tools.
Flutter Unique Selling Point?
High Performance
The app’s performance can be measured with the help of various metrics: CPU usages, frames per second, an average response time, etc. Flutter provides a consistently smooth and clear image with a stable rate of 60 fps, while its rivals, such as Xamarin or React Native, can hardly do 58 fps.
Fast Development
For developers, building a full-fledged app with Flutter is faster as it means more dynamic coding. Since software engineers do not need to write a separate codebase for each platform, they can pay more attention to the app’s performance, features, etc. Furthermore, Hot reload function enables developers to make changes in the code and see them implemented in the app within several (mili)seconds. It works by sending the updated source code files into Dart Virtual Machine. Right after VM processes changes, Flutter immediately rebuilds the widget tree so that you can view the effect of your changes in the codebase. Hot reload fosters teamwork and strengthens collaboration between the development and design team as both of them can work simultaneously to get the desired UI.
Cost-efficiency
For business owners, Flutter stands out as a cost-effective solution that reduces nearly 60 percent of development costs. Due to its time-saving benefits, it provides you with a chance to shorten your time to market and get your app released on both platforms simultaneously. The earlier your app reaches the market, the higher the chance for it to resonate with your target audience.
Custom Design
While Xamarin and React Native handle UI drawing by wrapping platform-specific native components, Flutter is much more convenient in building appealing UI interfaces. This mobile app SDK has its own render engine that allows the creation of custom design for Android and iOS. When you work with other cross-platform development tools, you should keep in mind that some features are supported by one platform or another. Thus, you do lots of testing on different devices and screens to make sure your product does not look broken. However, with Flutter, you feel much safer as you can easily extend and customize elements to your users’ needs, which significantly reduces the testing time.
An Open-Source Tool
Flutter is an open-source SDK built by Google, which means developers can enjoy countless possibilities of customizations, starting from materials and then end up with animation and gestures.
One of the biggest drawbacks is that many Developers have the perception that there are not enough Flutter jobs. As a result, Developers learn to program in Flutter, but do nothing with this skill. Status Pro wants to counter this by looking for the best job opportunities in Flutter. Click here to find out more about our Flutter job opportunities.
