Types of Apps

TYPES OF APPS : In the last trending thursday post we saw the basics & outline of app development now let’s dive a little deeper into it. Before we go into the steps and process of it let’s look at the broad type of apps available.

We saw earlier that the major two platforms/OS on which an app can be made available are Android & AppleiOS. Developers generally use specific technology throughout the design process and on this basis the apps are classified into 3 major categories:  native apps hybrid apps and web app The features (in brief) of each type are as follows:

Native Apps:

Built specifically for mobile’s OS;
Optimizes user experience
Operates more quickly and intuitively;
Better performance;
Access to broad choice of device’s features (directly connected to hardware);
Can be coded using variety of languages;
java, kotlin, python, swift etc used;
Increased effort & cost for different platforms;
More maintenance required for updation in codebase for each version;
Takes up space on user’s device to reinstall every update;

Web Apps:

Similar to native apps but accessed through web browser;
No need to download, saves space;
Responsive websites, adapts its UI to users’ device;
html5 (mainly) css javascript etc;
Cuts down development cost;
Easier to maintain;
Works only with active internet connection;
Connection needed even in offline mode to download, save & load new data;
Dependent on the browser being used;

Hybrid Apps:

Can be installed on device but runs through web browser;
In a shell its a web app with look and feel of a native one;
Uses mixture of web technologies & APIs; ionic HTML5 etc used;
Once installed the native app shell connects to embedded browser;
Browser & its plugins run in the backend;
Developing it is faster and more economical;
Consistent user experience even on slow network;
Uses a single code base;
Easier to maintain;
Lacks speed and power;

Depending on the resources in terms of money and time are available to you as a developer/investor and the requirements present, any of the above mentioned types can be used.