Cross-platform mobile development

Native app development

Native app development involves building mobile applications using platform-specific languages, which can be a costly process requiring specialist developers for each platform. The work will be duplicated every time you develop for a different operating system. However, native apps do have some advantages, offering superior performance and a better user experience. If your core audience overwhelmingly favour one operating system over others, you might choose to focus your resources on developing a native app for that environment. But if you are looking for a genuinely cross-platform solution, it’s good to explore the other options open to you.

Web application development

You might decide to develop your app using web technology, although a web-based mobile app isn’t strictly an app. Instead, it’s a website that behaves like an app, but is accessed through a smartphone browser. The benefit of web application development is that it’s fast, quick and easy. However, performance will never be as responsive or interactive as that of a genuine mobile application. It also has the disadvantage of requiring internet connectivity in order to function.

Hybrid app development

One solution to the cross-platform problem is to choose a hybrid app development platform. This allows developers to do the bulk of the development work using a single language or set of languages, before tweaking the code to customise it for different mobile operating systems. Effectively a cross between web and native app development, the hybrid approach can be a good option for those on a budget. However, in order to create apps that work well in each environment, it may still involve a significant amount of custom coding.

Nativescript: A truly native cross-platform solution

NativeScript is a framework that can be used to create cross-platform mobile apps that are truly native. Working with JavaScript and JavaScript-based languages such as Angular and TypeScript, NativeScript allows developers to write one single application, which can then be deployed on any mobile operating system, with access to device-specific UIs and capabilities. In most cases, there is minimal work needed in order to customise the app for a particular OS. The result is an app that behaves just like a native app, but can be built and deployed in half the time.

We’ve seen how mobile apps can improve existing processes by making them quicker and more efficient. But in many cases, mobile business applications can actually be a game-changer, providing the technology for companies to do things that have never been done before. Our expert developers can help you to build business mobile apps that work on any platform. Contact us today to discuss how our NativeScript app development could benefit your project.