Mobile Application Assignment 1
Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................1
P1 - Types of Mobile apps......................................................................................................................1
P1 – Context of Mobile apps..................................................................................................................4
P1 – Mobile Device Integration.............................................................................................................7
P2 - Mobile app programming.............................................................................................................12
M1 – Analyzing different Mobile Applications.....................................................................................16
Analyzing Citymapper..........................................................................................................................16
Analyzing Canva...................................................................................................................................19
Analyzing Uber.....................................................................................................................................21
D1 – Evaluating different Mobile Applications.....................................................................................22
Evaluating Citymapper.........................................................................................................................22
Evaluating Canva..................................................................................................................................24
Evaluating Uber...................................................................................................................................27
Sources (References)...........................................................................................................................29
Introduction
I am a junior developer tasked with creating a report for a company that is considering moving into
mobile applications, this report will cover the types of mobile applications, and give context to
mobile applications and their integration, user interfaces and operating systems with programming
environments covered.
P1 - Types of Mobile apps
The types of mobile applications are Native apps, web apps and hybrid apps, these all have different
purposes, advantages and disadvantages which are talked about below.
Native Applications – These are applications that are accessed through icons on a device home
screen, being installed through an application store like Google Play or another app store like
Apple’s, they are designed for one platform and often can take advantage of a mobile devices
These are applications like Pokémon GO and navigation applications like City Mapper
Native Apps Advantages
- Speed (Native applications are faster since a lot of the elements come preloaded with the
actual application itself and user data is fetched from the web)
- Work offline (A lot of these applications work offline being accessible without internet access
although some applications might have some features disabled like ad viewing etc.)
, - Aspect ratio (Native applications automatically correct the aspect ratio of the device which
ensures information is displayed correctly)
Native Apps Disadvantages
- Lengthy download process (Involves going to the app store, finding the application and then
downloading it).
- No flexibility (Developers are forced to code for one platform at a time using different code
depending on if the development is on IOS or android devices).
- Native applications are expensive to develop (maintaining the application is roughly 15% to
20% of the development cost, this includes updating the application).
Web Applications – These are applications that are on the internet (web) and thus need internet
access to use, it stores all the data online and uses code like JavaScript, HTML5 or CSS it also requires
less memory space to use on the mobile device.
Apps like Canva (designing tool) and the web application of Instagram need an internet connection
to use, unlike the hybrid application on the app store.
Web Application Advantages
- Cost (developing a web application is a cheaper alternative compared to other app types, it
also usually takes less time to develop).
- Customization (easy to customize web apps since it is easier to change the interface of a web
app).
- Platform Support (Web apps allow for easy adoption of windows, IOS and Android devices).
Web Application Disadvantages
- Weak security (no quality control system).
- Requires Internet Access
- Web issues (Web application is entirely dependent on the website so if that goes down, the
web app is likely to as well).
, Hybrid Applications – Hybrid applications are software apps that use features of both native and
web apps although has lower performance and usually is less valuable to the end user. (Uses code
like: Objective C, HTML5 and Swift).
Examples of hybrid apps include Gmail and Uber which have a single code base for all mobile device
OS’s and are these apps are downloaded from the respective app store (e.g App store for IOS and
Google Play for Android).
Hybrid Application Advantages
- Quicker and Cheaper to build (Single base code for multiple OS’s)
- Less Code to Maintain (HTML language is easy to maintain and keeping versions isn’t
needed, hybrid apps unlike native apps do not need to produce new applications whenever
a new OS is released)
Hybrid Application Disadvantages
- Slower compared to native apps (Each element must be downloaded).
- Certain features might not be usable on certain mobile devices.
- Lower graphics (Hybrid apps aren’t suitable to render 3D graphics).
Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................1
P1 - Types of Mobile apps......................................................................................................................1
P1 – Context of Mobile apps..................................................................................................................4
P1 – Mobile Device Integration.............................................................................................................7
P2 - Mobile app programming.............................................................................................................12
M1 – Analyzing different Mobile Applications.....................................................................................16
Analyzing Citymapper..........................................................................................................................16
Analyzing Canva...................................................................................................................................19
Analyzing Uber.....................................................................................................................................21
D1 – Evaluating different Mobile Applications.....................................................................................22
Evaluating Citymapper.........................................................................................................................22
Evaluating Canva..................................................................................................................................24
Evaluating Uber...................................................................................................................................27
Sources (References)...........................................................................................................................29
Introduction
I am a junior developer tasked with creating a report for a company that is considering moving into
mobile applications, this report will cover the types of mobile applications, and give context to
mobile applications and their integration, user interfaces and operating systems with programming
environments covered.
P1 - Types of Mobile apps
The types of mobile applications are Native apps, web apps and hybrid apps, these all have different
purposes, advantages and disadvantages which are talked about below.
Native Applications – These are applications that are accessed through icons on a device home
screen, being installed through an application store like Google Play or another app store like
Apple’s, they are designed for one platform and often can take advantage of a mobile devices
These are applications like Pokémon GO and navigation applications like City Mapper
Native Apps Advantages
- Speed (Native applications are faster since a lot of the elements come preloaded with the
actual application itself and user data is fetched from the web)
- Work offline (A lot of these applications work offline being accessible without internet access
although some applications might have some features disabled like ad viewing etc.)
, - Aspect ratio (Native applications automatically correct the aspect ratio of the device which
ensures information is displayed correctly)
Native Apps Disadvantages
- Lengthy download process (Involves going to the app store, finding the application and then
downloading it).
- No flexibility (Developers are forced to code for one platform at a time using different code
depending on if the development is on IOS or android devices).
- Native applications are expensive to develop (maintaining the application is roughly 15% to
20% of the development cost, this includes updating the application).
Web Applications – These are applications that are on the internet (web) and thus need internet
access to use, it stores all the data online and uses code like JavaScript, HTML5 or CSS it also requires
less memory space to use on the mobile device.
Apps like Canva (designing tool) and the web application of Instagram need an internet connection
to use, unlike the hybrid application on the app store.
Web Application Advantages
- Cost (developing a web application is a cheaper alternative compared to other app types, it
also usually takes less time to develop).
- Customization (easy to customize web apps since it is easier to change the interface of a web
app).
- Platform Support (Web apps allow for easy adoption of windows, IOS and Android devices).
Web Application Disadvantages
- Weak security (no quality control system).
- Requires Internet Access
- Web issues (Web application is entirely dependent on the website so if that goes down, the
web app is likely to as well).
, Hybrid Applications – Hybrid applications are software apps that use features of both native and
web apps although has lower performance and usually is less valuable to the end user. (Uses code
like: Objective C, HTML5 and Swift).
Examples of hybrid apps include Gmail and Uber which have a single code base for all mobile device
OS’s and are these apps are downloaded from the respective app store (e.g App store for IOS and
Google Play for Android).
Hybrid Application Advantages
- Quicker and Cheaper to build (Single base code for multiple OS’s)
- Less Code to Maintain (HTML language is easy to maintain and keeping versions isn’t
needed, hybrid apps unlike native apps do not need to produce new applications whenever
a new OS is released)
Hybrid Application Disadvantages
- Slower compared to native apps (Each element must be downloaded).
- Certain features might not be usable on certain mobile devices.
- Lower graphics (Hybrid apps aren’t suitable to render 3D graphics).
