Getting Mobile App Testing Right From the First Step

A mobile app development cycle cannot do without a testing stage. It is this stage that guarantees the quality of the final product and its compliance with business requirements. It is important to understand this for both the customer and the contractor. But how to approach testing mobile applications correctly and what to pay attention to, we will tell you in this article.

What Is Mobile Application Testing?

Mobile testing is defined as a set of actions to test mobile applications for compliance, performance, functionality, and usability.

It is important to remember that testing is automatic and manual testing mobile applications. There are several types of software testing (unit testing, functional testing, system testing, etc.), which are carried out by different specialists.

It is important to understand that software testing includes not only the actual testing but also many other activities associated with the quality assurance process:

• analysis and planning;
• development of test scripts;
• evaluation of test completion criteria;
• writing reports;
• reviewing the documentation (including source code);
• static analysis.

This is an important and necessary development stage.

Types of Mobile Testing

As we said, there are different types of software testing, each of which has its own purpose and purpose.

There are such types of testing:

• Usability testing (ease of use for the user).
• Compatibility testing (devices, browsers, OS versions, screen sizes).
• Interface testing (navigation, buttons, bookmarks, settings).
• Service testing (online and offline).
• Low-level testing of resources (cache cleaning, memory usage, database growth).
• Performance testing (battery level, connection changes from 2G, 3G to WIFI).
• Operational testing (backups, data loss, etc.).
• Installation tests (uninstallation and installation processes).
• Security testing (data security level).

Only by carrying out all these tests will the quality of the final product be guaranteed.

Basic Difference between Android and iOS Testing

Testing on iOS and Android has a number of differences based on the specifics of operating systems.

Let's consider the main aspects in which there are differences:

1. System type: open or closed

iOS is a closed source OS with an XNU core based on C / C ++ and Objective-C. Android is open source with Linux as the core of the kernel, in C / C ++.

2. Variety of devices: many or one

Android has a huge variety of devices to consider when testing. iOS has significantly less variety.

3. Software update

In Android devices, the update occurs automatically, while the OS update itself is not released very often. On iOS, users can download updates on their own, and they are released much more often.

4. Dimensions and location of the screen

Due to the variety of Android devices, special attention is required to layout and screen size. In iOS, everything is much simpler, and the devices have predictable functionality.

5. Screen resolution

This is a particularly acute problem for Android devices, while things are easier on iOS.

6. App Stores

There are different requirements for Android and iOS stores that should be taken into account. At the same time, the requirements in the Apple Store are much more serious and change more often.

These are the main reasons why testing an application is different on different mobile devices.

Read also: Mobile App Design Fundamentals: User Experience & User Interface

The Specifics of Mobile App Testing

So, how to test an app? Apps testing has a number of features based on the functionality of the devices themselves. Let's take a look at the key factors to consider.

1. Stable throughput of the network and the operator's network, interruption testing will help here.

2. A well-developed user interface with a smooth and understandable structure. The crowd testing method will help here.

3. High level of performance when using any function, regardless of the device.

4. Effective end-to-end security, supported by appropriate testing, to identify threats and vulnerabilities and ensure data security.

5. Stability in all operating systems with all versions. Thus, mobile testing should give positive results not only from the technical side but also from the side of an ordinary user, which is any developer.

The Right Strategy for Mobile App Testing

These mobile app testing strategies help overcome many of the challenges associated with app development.

1. A clear understanding of the problems

What kind of devices the audience uses, what tools and functions need to be tested, how and for what tasks the application needs to be optimized, all this needs to be announced to the QA team.

2. Tasting on emulators and physical devices

At first, in the initial stages of development, you can use emulators and simulators to test individual functions, after which you should proceed to full testing on real devices.

3. Organization of beta testing

Marketers or even peers can help you with this. The main thing is the interest in the product and the subsequent preparation of the report.

When to Actually Implement Testing of Your Mobile App

To get the most out of your investment of effort and money, you need to start testing as early as possible. This can be testing individual functions or testing a finished application.

You can also use the TDD method as it is most effective in developing a quality product. But this is a more costly approach to development, although it gives high efficiency.

Conclusions

Thus, mobile app testing is a necessary stage of development. Only when problems are detected in the early stages of development, you can guarantee the stable operation and security of user data.

In addition to quality and reputation, product testing helps to reduce the company's financial risks in the future. The best solution would be to use TDD, since instant verification of the written code is the most efficient use of work resources.