You might be one of the countless individuals from the world over who is researching app development for your business. Maybe you had an idea that you think has immense potential, or you are just plain curious about what app development can do for you. Wherever you are, you need to begin at the beginning. One of the essentials in understanding app development is the type of apps that can be developed. These are split into three categories – native apps, web apps, and hybrid apps. Each category is unique, and all of them have some positives going for them, and some negatives that count against them. We have explained all three categories below, so you can find which kind of app will work best for your needs!
Exploring the basics — what are native, hybrid and web apps?
Native apps — Native apps are all the apps that you download from app stores that are coded in the programming language specific to each operating system. The coding is done using Software Development Kits or SDKs made available by the creators of the platform. A native app allows developers to leverage all the capabilities of the smartphone such as its camera, address book, motion sensor and gesture-capabilities among other things.
So, if a developer creates an app for Android, they would code it in Java, and incorporate every aspect of functionality that the device has to offer based on his or her needs. Native apps are the most dedicated kind of apps, and should be used when the developer needs to create complex, powerful apps. While a lot of native apps use the phone’s internet connection, one of their prominent features is also that they allow users to run the app offline.
Advantages:
Powerful
Full access to device features
Works offline
Appears on the app marketplace
Matches interface to device
Usually the quickest and most responsive
Disadvantages:
Cost of development is usually the highest
Typically takes the longest time to develop
Requires the app to be downloaded and installed by each user; takes up space on the device
Most complicated to maintain
Can only be developed for one platform at a time
Additional fee required to publish the app
Limited by the rules and regulations of the marketplace it is published on
Web Apps — Web apps are websites designed to run optimally on smartphones. They are based on HTML 5 and can only be accessed only through a web browser. Usually, they have a dedicated URL that you are redirected to when you try to access a specific website on your phone. This URL hosts the web app, and while its interface can be similar to that of a native app, a web app is not capable of harnessing all of the smart devices’ in-built functionalities. However, they are typically designed to orient themselves to smartphone screen sizes and content is reshuffled for optimized viewing on each device.
Advantages:
Relatively cheaper to develop
No need to download and install
Can be easily deployed across platforms
Cost of development is typically the lowest
Easier to maintain
Greater discoverability
Disadvantages:
Cannot leverage smartphone functionalities
Requires an internet connection, cannot be used offline
Limited user interface
Dependent on browser to run
Hybrid Apps — As the name suggests, this type of app is a cross between a web app and a native app. It is basically a web app, given an outer shell and appearance of a native app. It is developed on web-based platforms such as HTML 5 or Javascript, but gets a dedicated icon and does not need a separate web browser. They are also made available through app marketplaces and have access to a few of the phone’s in-built functionalities. It is basically a web-based app that has the same style of execution and access that a native app does. A compromise between the two approaches, hybrid apps allow companies to have a presence in the app marketplace without the expenses of developing a native app.
Advantages:
Cheaper to develop and maintain than a full-blown native app
Can harness smart device technologies
Easier cross-platform development than native app
Has limited offline functionalities
Does not need a browser to run
Disadvantages:
Not as powerful or versatile as a native app
More expensive and time consuming to develop than a web app
Is not fully capable of offline use
Performance limited to similar levels as a web app
Requires separate download and installation; takes up space on the device
Additional fee required to publish the app
Limited by the rules and regulations of the marketplace it is published on
Now that you have a good grasp of the pros and cons of native, web and hybrid apps, you might need expert advice to understand which app meets your individual project needs best. Extentia has solid proficiency in app development and our team of developers and experts have created successful apps for a wide range of businesses. Contact us for a consultation right away!
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