A decade ago there was when businesses were only concentrating on the product’s success, but now it has completely changed. The technology age has forced all companies to align with cutting-edge and advanced software development trends like AI/ML, IoT, Cloud computing, etc. In this competitive market, enterprise mobile apps are designed and developed to increase the efficiency of their brand and services.
However, to create successful mobile apps, enterprises must consider native and cross-platform mobile development. As the leading mobile app development company in India, we know that your business needs to select the type of development for your project. In this blog, we will clear all the confusion in your mind by giving an overview of Native and Cross-platform development. Also, we will compare both the platforms, which will give you an idea about which to select for your project. Let’s dive into it!
What is Native app development?
Native mobile apps are specifically designed for the specific operating system like iOS or Android. It is written by using platform-specific programming languages, frameworks, and tools. For example, you can create native Android application development with Java or Kotlin, or if you want to build an iOS app, you may opt for Objective-C or Swift.
Pros of Native app development
When comparing the two platforms, it is necessary to discuss the pros and cons of both frameworks. Let’s take a look at them below.
- Improved User Experience
In this, it merges the better performance and gives accessibility to the unique gadget features, which allows the users to use the apps smoothly and seamlessly. Hence, these apps are fast, more efficient, and responsive to user actions.
- Enhances App Security
It is the most crucial factor to consider while using mobile apps. Native mobile apps inherently consist of tailored and solid security features in comparison to cross-platform apps. Moreover, it is simple and easy for native app developers to integrate file encryption and other security measures by using the intended platform resources and libraries.
- Easy UI/UX
If you wish to develop mobile apps with a robust user experience with a great look and feel, then the native platform is best for you. The app can be created with the help of a native software development kit (SDK) to give the users a smooth flow.
- Offline Functionality
The significant advantage of using Native apps is that they can run flawlessly without an internet connection. It also gives the app functionality and features access even when your device is in airplane mode or the offline environment. Hence, this feature is helpful for those people who are living in rural areas and have internet connectivity with limited data.
- Minimize the Bugs
Managing the two codebases is challenging compared to the single codebase in native app development. Hence, native apps have only one codebase and do not rely on cross-platform tools; with this, they come up with minimal bugs.
Cons of Native app development
- Longer Development Cycle
Native app development for multiple platforms will have a longer development cycle than cross-platform or web-based app development, which results in launching the app in the market. It must have a negative impact on the platforms. However, if iOS users get some new features faster than Android users, then there is the opportunity that they may lose app users. So, the changes in the native tools will make it challenging to integrate the same features, increasing the development lifecycle.
- High Cost
One of the drawbacks of native app development is the cost. Native app development is complicated, so it needs an experienced native app developers team. However, you need to target two different audiences. In that case, you may need two other native apps with two separate development teams, ultimately increasing the development cost.
- No code Reusability
If the native apps are built separately for iOS and Android, then you have to code and develop the app for both mobile operating systems. Thus, it will demand time, effort, and resources. As opposed to cross-platform apps, native apps do not have the functionality of the reusable codebase.
What is a Cross-Platform Mobile Application?
It is a program developed using a single codebase that runs on different operating systems like iOS or Android. It allows programmers to write code once and run on distinct platforms, saving development time and effort compared to native app development. When the app is created with this, it will deliver an intuitive user experience and ease of maintenance. This app is being accessed via the specific native device features via the APIs that will fill the gap between the code reusability and platform-specific capabilities.
Pros of Cross-Platform Mobile Applications
- Reusability of Code
Programmers can reuse some significant parts of the code across the platform, which will decrease the development time and effort of the team. However, this unified codebase lets the development team work on both platforms simultaneously. A shared codebase also supports ignoring the app issues in the UI/UX design or security. Thus, this will permit our coders to make the OS changes immediately with little to no modification.
- Faster Development Time
Cross-platform apps have a single development cycle to deploy on distinct platforms; then the overall development time will become quicker as the app’s reusability code allows the enterprise to hire only one developer who can work on both platforms, which will help them to deploy apps faster in the market.
- Ease of Maintenance
Maintaining and updating the single codebase will simplify the process because the changes are applied universally, which will help them save time and resources. So, here again, releasing the app with the updated features and functionality will be simple in cross-platform apps.
- Cost-effective
These apps are created on the idea “ Write once, run everywhere,” meaning that they have a single codebase for running on multiple platforms, which would cut down the development cost. Thus, this approach allows you to develop and distribute one app on multiple app stores.
Cons of Cross-Platform Development
- Performance Issues
Some developers argue that the performance of multiplatform apps is low compared to native apps. However, this app requires a rendering process and an additional abstraction layer, which reduces the app’s speed. Thus, it will create performance issues in app development.
- Functionality Constraints
Cross-platform mobile app development must adapt their features, design, and development to target particular OS and devices. It requires extra effort from the mobile app development team to handle these individual differences for the various platforms and devices. Hence, this lowers the speed of app performance, which will deliver a bad user experience.
Difference Between Cross-Platform Apps Vs. Native Apps
Now that you know both frameworks, quickly examine the difference between cross-platform and native apps.
| Parameters | Native | Cross-Platform |
| Development time | It is high because the code for both platforms is written from scratch. | It consumes less time because a single codebase can be used on multiple platforms. |
| User Experience | Delivers excellent user experience that results in high speed, better performance, and the utilization of the device’s features. | It is complicated for developers and designers to cater to all the UX needs in a single app. So, improving the UX by composing the speed will be an effort. |
| Language Compatibility | Native apps are created for the platform-specific language—for instance, Java and Kotlin for Android and Swift and Objective C for iOS app development. | Cross-platform apps are developed with JavaScript that is compatible with multiple platforms. |
| Dependency | Minimal dependence on other source libraries and platforms. | Largely reliant on multiple libraries and tools. |
| Cost and Maintenance App Development | High development cost because it requires creating more than one app for the different platforms. With this, maintenance will become a costly and time-consuming process. | It is cost-effective in terms of development and maintenance if compared to Native app development. |
| UI Consistency | Consistent with the UI elements of the devices. | It needs more consistency with the apps. |
| Example | Whatsapp, Instagram, Netflix, Youtube, Snapchat. | Discord, Airbnb, CandyCrush Saga, Duolingo. |
Conclusion
Whether selecting cross-platform or native mobile app development has its pros and cons. However, the platform choice is dependent on your project requirements.
Native apps are the best when considering the user experience and performance. While they are costly to develop, they give you better visuals and have fewer bugs and errors.
Cross-platform app development is easy and quick to build, but it needs an effort to deliver a great user experience on the respective platform.
If you still have any doubt about selecting cross-platform vs. native mobile app development, connect with the best Cross-Platform App Development in India and get advice from their expert team to clear all your queries.
Read More :- 5 Key Reasons Why A Business Must Opt For A Mobile Application
