How Mobile App Testing Makes or Breaks Mobile User Experience

In today’s modern world users want to be able to access websites and apps on multiple devices and to be able to access them whenever they want. Gone are the days when websites were accessed only on desktops and laptops, today it is imperative they are available 24 hours a day and that they work seamlessly and effectively.

With smartphones becoming increasingly intrinsic to our lives, the need for accessible services becomes all the more critical.  It is estimated that mobile users will reach an estimated 7.26 billion in number around the world this year and as users grow, so does the need for services to be accessible.

With our lives increasingly depending and revolving around smart devices, they all bring convenience to users in one way or another. Which makes mobile application testing all the more important to ensure it works for your entire audience.

When building a first-class mobile app, developers should always have mobile app testing at the forefront of everything they do.

The importance of mobile testing

Mobile app testing is essential to ensure a smooth end user experience. The reality is that around 80-90 percent of mobile apps launched in the app stores are abandoned just after a single use. So much so, that research from Business of Apps says that an average mobile app tends to lose somewhere around 77% of Daily Active Users (DAUs) within just three days of being installed.

It is imperative therefore that mobile apps go through as rigorous a testing process as possible. However, there are some challenges when it comes to mobile testing, the main ones being:

• Testing multiple mobile devices – a huge number of mobile devices are available today, which range from smartphones to tablets to handsets. This creates a huge diversity of environments where your mobile app will reside. It cannot be guaranteed that if a tested application works well on one device it will work well on another even if it is from the same product family. This is because things like the CPU, screen resolution, memory and hardware could we different.
• Device fragmentation and different OS platforms – one of the most difficult aspects of the mobile testing matrix is device fragmentation. The iOS device matrix is growing more than ever, leaving fragmentation a huge issue for the android operating system. Compatibility issues between different devices are therefore often difficult to overcome.
• Different mobile app types – a mobile app can be a native app, a web app or a hybrid one that has both components. The testing of each app is often different than another as their implementation is often very different from one another.
• Different test interfaces – mobile simulators and emulators are an important testing tool that enables the verification of general functionality and perform regular regression testing. This means that testing conducted will often be in an environment that is not real.

Solving mobile testing challenges is the key to their success

Solving these challenges is therefore vital when it comes to building a first-class mobile app. Here are some of the potential solutions that can help:

• Use a mobile device testing framework

A potential solution to testing on multiple mobile devices is to use a mobile device testing framework, as this can save time and effort compared to manually testing each individual device. Another option is to use a cloud-based testing service which allows you to run tests on a variety of physical devices without having to manage them all yourself.

• Use cross-platform mobile app development

Using cross-platform mobile app development can help DevOps write code once for apps and deploy it across multiple such as iOS, Android, and others. Cross-platform mobile app development can help reduce the effort required to maintain different versions of an app for various operating systems and device types. Additionally, using responsive design principles and adopting a mobile-first approach to app development can also help mitigate the effects of device fragmentation.

• Testing different mobile app types

Testing different mobile app types often requires different approaches, techniques and tools. When testing native apps emulator/simulator testing along with functional testing, real device testing, compatibility testing, performance and security testing is key. When it comes to testing mobile apps it is important to consider responsiveness and compatibility testing as well. Whatever you do, the specific features and requirements of each app type you are testing, as well as their target platforms and devices should be planned out carefully when undertaking your testing process.

Conclusion

Whether you are conducting manual or automated testing, mobile app testing cannot be undertaken without the right tools. Ensuring you have access to these when undertaking the testing of your mobile apps can ensure they are tested successfully and will reduce the chances of bugs or app failures. While it is often tempting to overlook testing your mobile apps, how well they work can make or break their success.