Which platform is best to build an app – Android or IOS?

Ever since the evolution of smartphones, app development has undergone various astronomical changes and have used various platforms. The two most prominent and popular app development platforms, IOS and Android have been locking horns with each other, trying hard to out-smart the other at every single opportunity. It's not a straightforward answer to the question which platform is the best? There are a lot of parameters and scenarios to consider before we can arrive at a decisive solution. Let's analyze both these platform with regards to the following.

The demographics

Determining the target demographic is a very critical factor for the success of any business venture and both these platforms have precisely defined their target demographics and was able to cater to their needs brilliantly. IOS targeted the demographic that included people who have a higher income, higher spending capacity and those who have a higher level of engagement. While the Android targeted, a slightly lower income demographic and the developing nations. This does not mean people in the IOS-targeted demographic are not using an Android and vice versa.

The Revenue Models

The revenue models of both the Android and the IOS platforms directly reflects the revenue-generating approaches of Google and Apple respectively. A high percentage of apps, those support ads are present in Android, while the IOS has more users who pay for the apps.

The Development Speed

Android, even though being an open source, has hurdles with regard to lockdowns by carriers and OEMs and results in the new apps taking a longer time to adapt to the latest OS in Android when compared to the IOS. This has a direct impact on the development speed as an Android app takes a longer time to build when compared to the IOS. Another consideration to the development speed is the release-to-approval ratio. On average, Apple approves 4-5 updates per month while Android approves the same number of updates per day. So we can positively say that Apple gets your app to the market quickly and Android allows the users of your app to get regular updates more quickly.

The Apps – Cost & Features

• Cost

Hiring an IOS App development company or an Android App development company or doing the development process in-house, the cost can be measurable on all scenarios. As Android apps take a longer time to build, the cost of building those apps are obviously higher. This is where IOS edges forward as their apps bring in more revenue compared to the Android.

• Features

Being an open source, Android offers the developer a much deeper access to the operating system itself, thus enabling the creation of apps, enriched with features. Some apps are built to be run on a rugged hardware with a customized ROM. An Android platform suits well for these kinds of apps and has an advantage over an IOS platform. IOS on the other hand, with its more “locked-down” OS, compared to the “open” OS of the Android, was able to penetrate effortlessly into the business sector, offering secure applications.

Final Words

It's very much clear by this point, that not one platform can be crowned a distinct winner. Each of the two platforms has its pros and cons and are put to use, based on the various necessities. You as an application developer or an entrepreneur should be able to decide the platform that's well-suited for your app and its users. Sometimes both an IOS and an Android platform can be used to create one app to capture a major share of the market. Hence, make the right choice and take your app towards a greater success.

Google introduces Android Basics Nanodegree

A career in Android apps development always remain as the most astonishing one for every aspiring Android app developer for it is the most happening and so extensive a domain. Individuals who wish to learn programming on Android  and those who know a little about android development will obviously find a great opportunity in the Google’s new offering, “The Android Basics Nanodegree”.

The course offers a good chance for beginners to learn the basics about android programming direct from the horse’s mouth. The program has been launched by Udacity experts in accompaniment with Google.

Along with this program, the first 50 students who finish this course will receive a chance to win a complete scholarship to register in Udacity’s career tracking on the Android Developer Nanodegree program. The scholarship will enable students to get the complete support of experts from the time of enrollment to graduation.

This Udacity-Google tie-up will bring valuable help for the new developers to earn the most crucial knowledge on Android programming. The course includes vital points on Java programming language, interacting with web API’s and the essentials enable the programmers to utilize the SQL database.

The course will transform a student into a technical perfect android developer having a strong fundamental knowledge. At the time of completion of the course, students will have to successfully complete 10 projects including 8 functional application creation in it.

The cost of this Nanodegree offered by Google comes around $199 per month. Students can learn the typical course directly from Google experts. Users will be trained to build real-time applications and professional portfolios. Within two hours of posting the project, expert reviews will be delivered on the project. The user can make use of Udacity Connect to get a chance of face-to face learning.

Nanodegree by Google is structured to be an excellent course for freshers who want to know more on Android application development. The cost per month for learning this program is on the higher side, but the program will provide android app developers with some practical ideas for building some advanced applications.

The New features of Android N

The new update of the Android, the N version shows us a preview of what the Android version 7.0 will look like, when it arrives later this year. We have listed out the major features of the Android N, that we are  expecting, will be available in the official version.

Multitasking

The split-screen, multitasking feature has been added to the new version, which was lacking in other previous versions of the Android. It can be accessed by holding down the task-switching button. This doesn’t necessarily affect the android apps development as most of the apps works perfectly fine. Double tapping the task-switching button, switches directly to the recently used app, making it the “Alt-Tab” for the Android.

Notifications

The notifications in the new version of Android, N are visually crisp, with a complete design and smaller icons. They are more function too, i.e., you can now expand them twice successively to see more information and take action accordingly. The Android N also has little buttons to expand each notification. The most interesting feature is the ability to long-press on each notification to control how you’ll receive alerts from the respective app in the future. You also have an option to choose to display the notification silently or block them completely for apps and games, you have not used or played recently.

Settings

The very first change you'll notice in the settings of the new Android N is at the top, where suggestions are present for operations you may not have done with your phone yet, like setting up email accounts or voice commands. Each and every option on the list comes with relevant information so that you don’t have to enter each menu to find out what does it do. Being on the menu, you can now check various information like storage capacity, WiFi networks, data usage and many more. Another change is the reflection of the persistent settings in the list itself when activated.

Keyboard Themes

Not the biggest update, but still it's, an update with regards to Android N. You can now choose from numerous themes exclusively available for the stock Google keyboards.  You, now, have the option to choose colors, add or remove borders between the keys, and can even set a photo of your choice as the background.

Performance

The performance of the operating system has always been enhanced by Google in every version of the Android it releases and Android N is no exception either. N is adopting a new graphics API called the Vulkan, that will help in delivering a better visual performance for the phones and tablets. Google claims that the new JIT compiler will improve the battery life.

New Set of Emoji

All the quirky blobs are getting a more uniform appearance in this new version of the Android.  The other major proposal made by Google to the Unicode Consortium is to adopt 13 new emoji for a better representation of professional women.

Final Words

Apart from these and further value-added features, the main talking point when the official version arrives, will be its compatibility with virtual reality. Daydream, the new android-powered platform is meant to succeed Google's cardboard initiative. All these mean that, we're in for some exciting times in the near future.

New things in Android Application Development

To lead the excitement of android application developers to another level, Android as a platform is getting braced with some amazing improvements. The main additions include an advanced Developer Preview of Android N, an enhancement of virtual reality supported by Android, and a new Android studio and some performance improvements. All these inclusions exhibit the growth of Android to provide developers and users with some stunning features. Let us read all that here.

Speed, security, and productivity 

Android N focuses on delivering improved speed, security, and productivity to users. The new platform N is an outcome of extensive research done by developers to add the elegance of android. An updated JIT compiler was used in the first Developer Preview to deliver quick app installations, reduce storage space and boost up the software speed. Vulkan was included in the second N Developer Preview for improved 3D and graphical performance, especially on mobile devices.

Thus, both these Android N developer previews contain Multi-Window support and Direct Reply. The performance, security and productivity improvements are backed by a superior update option. It helps devices having Android N platform to do system updates in the backdrop. When a user powers up an android N device it will get automatically updated to new features. This Beta release can be accessed by using Nexus devices that run on stock android.

Android VR Mode 

Even though android has been running on multiple devices with different screen resolutions that can be used in anywhere as liked by the users, the older platform lacks an impressive presence of virtual contents. The ecosystem of Andriod does not have enough power to support VR mode. Developers had worked hard to make the ecosystem of Android superior in terms of display, and pixel clarity to provide users impressive visual reality. Single buffer rendering and other improvements have added in Android N to improve its performance as well as visual clarity. The latency graphics will surely provide the new Android N an edge over other devices.

No installation apps/ Android instant apps 

One of the supreme feature added to the Android N Developer is instant app installation. Here onward, users can run an application without installing it. Users need not have to install or authenticate android apps but they can run it in an instant. The instant app feature will be compatible with devices running on Jellybean or higher android operating systems. The feature will act as an upgrade, and it will not function as a separate app. Hence, users can experience it easily in the updated android ecosystem.

UI changes for Android Wear 2.0

Android wear 2.0 apps has been made to standalone. Now, users can access these apps directly by using cloud services, Wi-Fi or a smart phone connection without the aid of Data Layer API. A good number of UI changes have been added to make the Android Wear 2.0 consistent and beautiful.

Android Studio 2.2 Preview;- a new layout designer 

The finest way to run the features enabled in Android N is to use it with Android Studio 2.2 preview. Android Studio 2.2 preview comes with enriched options to add the visual and performance capability of android N. Thus, Android apps development will remain as an advanced and easy process with the launch of the Android N Developer.

Advanced Custom Web Development Services

With advancement in technology happening at a rapid pace, programmers and developer had to work smart and consistently to understand the latest trends and equip themselves with the required knowledge to keep up with the ever-happening change. Web development has come a long way from the traditional coding methods and website developers are faced with heightened expectations to deliver comprehensive websites. Custom web development came into forge and was able to deliver the goods with high precision and quality.

The advanced Custom web development services

Various custom web development companies are doing an excellent job in equipping themselves with the latest knowledge in technology advancement on a regular basis and are able to offer seamless services to the end users. The following are some of the advanced web development services being offered in the present time frame.

Enhanced Motion User Interface

Based on the trend shift  happening in 2016, website developers  are using the Motion Ui, a Sass library, that's used to create animations and CSS transitions in a very short span of time. Motion UI also helps in making app's transitions look smooth and rich with its predefined motions. Developers prefer Motion Ui for the way it seamlessly integrates the prototypical animated elements into websites.

Highly Responsive designs

The most recognized advancement in the web development service is the responsive designs. The emergence of wearable devices and cross-platform touch devices are challenging the website developers to create highly responsive designs that work relentlessly without affecting its functions and responsibilities. They make use of advance technologies like PHP, Node Js, Motion Ui, Semantic UI, etc., to come up such responsive and interactive designs.

Excellent Single Page App Framework

Built around Angular JS and the flexbox grid system, the Foundation for Apps is the first, front-end single page app framework that enables a quick and easy responsive web app creation process. Developers use this advancement so that they can concentrate writing codes that are unique for a   particular application.

Increased Usage of Cloud-based IDEs

Custom web developers are more inclined to use cloud-based versions of IDEs for its speed, accessibility and a huge community backing. Desktop-centered IDEs are still very much in reference, but a cloud-based IDE offers immense flexibility. All you need is a laptop to run a cloud-based IDE.   

Neutralizing various AD blocking pulgins 

Businesses are loosing millions in revenue due to the various ad blocking plugins. These plugins prevents ads from being shown on sites like YouTube, etc. Considered a nuisance for users, these ads are major revenue generation options for companies and developers are working on the technologies to nullify the effects of these Ad blocking plugins. 

Conclusion

Usage of various advancements not only ensure a top-notch website being created but also equips the developers with knowledge of the vast variety of tools and the latest development trends. The ever-growing need to make the web development process easy without any compromises, one can say for sure that more exciting and advanced services are yet to come!