Native and cross-platform: differences in approaches in the development of mobile applications
April 11, 2018Usually, each business company is published according to the following scenario: firstly, they create a website, then adapt to mobile device and if traffic increases, a company release an application for mobile device.
The comparison mobile website and an application seems superfluous, because applications exceed the wide spectrum of functions and flexible interface, which using on offline mode.
This article is intended to explain two approaches to application development - native and cross-platform, to help the customer and developer better understand each other, emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of each and try to answer the main question: how to make a choice in favor of this or that approach.
Native approach
For each platform there is native language, own for every operating system and recommended by developer: for iOS is Objectives-C or SWIFT, for Android – Java or Kotlin and for Windows Phone is C#. The application is built-in software of mobile phone and download on official shop Apple, Google Play and Windows.
Deficiency of limitations is advantage of native approach. The app has stylish design, powerful functional, branched menu, quickly graphic, interesting animation. The main dignity of native develop is using all of the system functions like camera, microphone, media and more. At the time, the app economically uses the memory and battery of device.
Cross-platform approach
When the first iPhone was released, all was simple: smartphone’s customers want applications and iPhone was the only device, which was to think of the developers. Their task was to accept the concept of the application, develop its logic, record the adapted code and everything – the work is done. Nobody was worried about cross-platform mobile applications.
Then there were smartphones running of Android operating system and changed the existing order of things. The surge of Windows Mobile and devices based on Symbian and BlackBerry, further complicated the situation.
Despite the dominance of iOS and Android, application developers could not ignore other devices. As a result, programmers had to write different codes for all platforms. Needless to say, the time spent developing the application, as well as the cost of the work has increased.
The fragmentation of formats and the existence of many different of operating system variants led to the need for such a category of approach in the develop of mobile application as cross-platform.
In the native approach, application are developed separately for each operating system, and in the cross-platform on everything is created at one time.
Cross-platform applications are often created in markup language and styles (HTML, CSS and JavaScript), as well as mobile sites. This is a practical approach, because after all, most of the internet content consists of HTML-pages. Such applications are simultaneously written and suitable for most devices, since the browser mechanism is used for work.
Most professionals working with these applications, use PhoneGap, which is suitable for providing apps access to most software and hardware platform capabilities.
If consider approaches in the develop of applications for personal computers, MS Word, Skype, mail agents and calendars are natively developed applications for the desktop operating system, and everything that happens in the browser (sites, online editors, social networks, chats and forums) are cross-platform technologies.
The comparison of approaches
The application market is changing. Statistics of the mobile application sales show that by year users change the default services to alternative ones: they use Evernote instead of the standard notes editor and prefer Wunderlist, rather than the built-in task manager.
It’s important for the customer to know what are the advantages and disadvantages of each of the approaches, so that when choosing not to overstate expectations. For a comparative analysis of cross-platform and native approaches, we will use a number of criteria.
Dependence on platform
There is a misconception that cross-platform applications are well-developed on all platforms, even unpopular ones. But with the caveat that developers need to add some additional code so that it was in reality.
Effective work guarantees a native approach, but it is worth remembering that for each platform you need your own version of the application.
User Experience
On a subconscious level the user expects from the application responsiveness. Then, the actions of the consumer should be in response to page scrolling and animations flow smoothly and without lagging.
The user is also confident, that all controls and the icon have standard view and position on the application screen. For platforms, these standards will be different and if the cross-platform application is developed on iOS, it will bring inconvenience to Android users, and vice versa.
Interface design
The language environment for develop native apps, have necessary tools for create usual customer interface. Different situation with web-technology: to need some efforts for create cross-platform app, which will be like native app.
Cross-platform frameworks help to imitate the native interface with some degree of certainly, but the animation speed, effects and design will different.
Security
For browsers, there is a standard secure HTTPS data transfer protocol. And when you need a special level of encryption, the solution lies with developers. Provide reliable protection is possible only in native development, since it is related to mathematics, and such operations require the effective use of hardware resources.
Limitations
A native application, written for a specific platform feels like a full-fledged inhabitant and has access to all the services of the device.
Developing a cross-platform application, experts take into account the capabilities of the framework, which imposes restrictions.
The problem may be that the framework has several versions, and the older, the more restrictions. Anyway, a cross-platform application does not have access to all the platform chips. But not always there is a need for full integration – it all depends on the tasks that the application decides.
Price
Native application is developed for each platform with all features and it makes mobile applications more flexible and scalable. That advantages allow add functional and improves app in the future. Wherein, native develop requires two developers, which work on two different platforms (iOS and Android). It makes native approach in development mobile applications more expensive, than cross-platform.
The main dignity of cross-platform approach is the speed of develop. It is slightly higher than native. And spend less time and resources.
The application is customized immediately under several operating systems and there is no need to prepare unique elements for each platform. To create a cross-platform application, you only need one expert who owns HTML, JavaScript and CSS with experience in PhoneGap. This makes it possible to start development with a smaller budget.
Cross-platform approach is not suitable for serious business projects. That type of development is advantageous when writing a prototype application for several platforms in a short time, for a gaming or test application. This speeds up development without sacrificing quality by using special graphical frameworks. If the project is not a game is for long-term development, it requires a positive user experience – native development remains an appropriate option.
Conclusion
Having considered two methods of creating a mobile application and their functions, you are now easily able to choose one or the other approach, depending on the situation or even combine them. If your goal is to impress users with a lightning-fast interface, rich functionality and performance, a native application is what you need. From a technical point of view and user experience, the native approach has many more advantages.
However, there are areas where cross-platform development is justified such as mobile games.
Cross-platform applications are much easier to keep up and deploy due to the fact that one application is created for all platforms. But the biggest disadvantage is the low performance, which can be especially important if your need an application with features that require deep hardware integration.
The comparison mobile website and an application seems superfluous, because applications exceed the wide spectrum of functions and flexible interface, which using on offline mode.
This article is intended to explain two approaches to application development - native and cross-platform, to help the customer and developer better understand each other, emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of each and try to answer the main question: how to make a choice in favor of this or that approach.
Native approach
For each platform there is native language, own for every operating system and recommended by developer: for iOS is Objectives-C or SWIFT, for Android – Java or Kotlin and for Windows Phone is C#. The application is built-in software of mobile phone and download on official shop Apple, Google Play and Windows.
Deficiency of limitations is advantage of native approach. The app has stylish design, powerful functional, branched menu, quickly graphic, interesting animation. The main dignity of native develop is using all of the system functions like camera, microphone, media and more. At the time, the app economically uses the memory and battery of device.
Cross-platform approach
When the first iPhone was released, all was simple: smartphone’s customers want applications and iPhone was the only device, which was to think of the developers. Their task was to accept the concept of the application, develop its logic, record the adapted code and everything – the work is done. Nobody was worried about cross-platform mobile applications.
Then there were smartphones running of Android operating system and changed the existing order of things. The surge of Windows Mobile and devices based on Symbian and BlackBerry, further complicated the situation.
Despite the dominance of iOS and Android, application developers could not ignore other devices. As a result, programmers had to write different codes for all platforms. Needless to say, the time spent developing the application, as well as the cost of the work has increased.
The fragmentation of formats and the existence of many different of operating system variants led to the need for such a category of approach in the develop of mobile application as cross-platform.
In the native approach, application are developed separately for each operating system, and in the cross-platform on everything is created at one time.
Cross-platform applications are often created in markup language and styles (HTML, CSS and JavaScript), as well as mobile sites. This is a practical approach, because after all, most of the internet content consists of HTML-pages. Such applications are simultaneously written and suitable for most devices, since the browser mechanism is used for work.
Most professionals working with these applications, use PhoneGap, which is suitable for providing apps access to most software and hardware platform capabilities.
If consider approaches in the develop of applications for personal computers, MS Word, Skype, mail agents and calendars are natively developed applications for the desktop operating system, and everything that happens in the browser (sites, online editors, social networks, chats and forums) are cross-platform technologies.
The comparison of approaches
The application market is changing. Statistics of the mobile application sales show that by year users change the default services to alternative ones: they use Evernote instead of the standard notes editor and prefer Wunderlist, rather than the built-in task manager.
It’s important for the customer to know what are the advantages and disadvantages of each of the approaches, so that when choosing not to overstate expectations. For a comparative analysis of cross-platform and native approaches, we will use a number of criteria.
Dependence on platform
There is a misconception that cross-platform applications are well-developed on all platforms, even unpopular ones. But with the caveat that developers need to add some additional code so that it was in reality.
Effective work guarantees a native approach, but it is worth remembering that for each platform you need your own version of the application.
User Experience
On a subconscious level the user expects from the application responsiveness. Then, the actions of the consumer should be in response to page scrolling and animations flow smoothly and without lagging.
The user is also confident, that all controls and the icon have standard view and position on the application screen. For platforms, these standards will be different and if the cross-platform application is developed on iOS, it will bring inconvenience to Android users, and vice versa.
Interface design
The language environment for develop native apps, have necessary tools for create usual customer interface. Different situation with web-technology: to need some efforts for create cross-platform app, which will be like native app.
Cross-platform frameworks help to imitate the native interface with some degree of certainly, but the animation speed, effects and design will different.
Security
For browsers, there is a standard secure HTTPS data transfer protocol. And when you need a special level of encryption, the solution lies with developers. Provide reliable protection is possible only in native development, since it is related to mathematics, and such operations require the effective use of hardware resources.
Limitations
A native application, written for a specific platform feels like a full-fledged inhabitant and has access to all the services of the device.
Developing a cross-platform application, experts take into account the capabilities of the framework, which imposes restrictions.
The problem may be that the framework has several versions, and the older, the more restrictions. Anyway, a cross-platform application does not have access to all the platform chips. But not always there is a need for full integration – it all depends on the tasks that the application decides.
Price
Native application is developed for each platform with all features and it makes mobile applications more flexible and scalable. That advantages allow add functional and improves app in the future. Wherein, native develop requires two developers, which work on two different platforms (iOS and Android). It makes native approach in development mobile applications more expensive, than cross-platform.
The main dignity of cross-platform approach is the speed of develop. It is slightly higher than native. And spend less time and resources.
The application is customized immediately under several operating systems and there is no need to prepare unique elements for each platform. To create a cross-platform application, you only need one expert who owns HTML, JavaScript and CSS with experience in PhoneGap. This makes it possible to start development with a smaller budget.
Cross-platform approach is not suitable for serious business projects. That type of development is advantageous when writing a prototype application for several platforms in a short time, for a gaming or test application. This speeds up development without sacrificing quality by using special graphical frameworks. If the project is not a game is for long-term development, it requires a positive user experience – native development remains an appropriate option.
Conclusion
Having considered two methods of creating a mobile application and their functions, you are now easily able to choose one or the other approach, depending on the situation or even combine them. If your goal is to impress users with a lightning-fast interface, rich functionality and performance, a native application is what you need. From a technical point of view and user experience, the native approach has many more advantages.
However, there are areas where cross-platform development is justified such as mobile games.
Cross-platform applications are much easier to keep up and deploy due to the fact that one application is created for all platforms. But the biggest disadvantage is the low performance, which can be especially important if your need an application with features that require deep hardware integration.
