Effective Strategies for Mobile App Testing in 2024

Mobile app development is a challenging life cycle with various stages, from coding to request submission. Testing is a crucial stage that holds the key to creating an app. 

In this blog, we shall discuss when mobile app testing can be done, how some apps are more trustworthy than others even after facing the same testing phases, and what effective strategies can be used to make testing right. Before comprehending these crucial concepts, we should understand the importance of mobile app testing on multiple devices.

Why are you required to test your Mobile Apps on multiple devices?

In the world of digitalization, smartphones have influenced human lives. Every day, the mobile app we use has its own parameters, performance, functionality, and operating system before launching an app. 

According to the survey, approximately 75% of mobile apps lose their daily user after four to five days of app installation due to incompatibility or insufficient feature support. It is crucial to note that organizations facing problems or failure after spending lots of cost, effort, and money are considered more complex. 

OS Fragmentation

As of the survey, Android has approximately 72% market share, whereas iOS has a 28% market share. So, most app failures are due to the compatibility with the device OS version and manufacturers' customization of the OS.  From the data above, the Android market is considerably higher than that of iOS. 

OS fragmentation occurs as a result of several OS versions. Both platforms have their versions, but as mobile app developers, we need to make sure mobile apps are compatible with multiple versions of OS to provide a user-friendly experience.

Device Fragmentation

If the mobile app created becomes incompatible with multiple Operating system versions, it becomes a complex and challenging testing matrix.

It can only sometimes be expected to have easy compatibility with other OS as every device has its parameters like chipsets, CPU, screen resolution, sensor, memory, etc. 

Therefore, it is crucial to utilize cross-device testing to ensure the app created performs seamlessly on various devices, configurations, and screen resolutions.

Moreover, it is crucial to note that Many browsers, like Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, Safari, etc., can be tricky because each mobile browser has different browser versions for multiple operating systems.

So, what is the best approach? Maintaining our in-house device labs? The answer is no! Maintaining and managing an in-house physical device lab is challenging as the number of devices increases significantly. It would help if you created a suitable device matrix to cover all the renowned devices in the market.

Based On Device Parameters: Based on the parameter, you need to choose the device matrix. The parameters include CPU, operator, screen resolutions, operating system versions, manufacturer, etc. Based On Device Popularity: Choose devices with a high market share. 

Now, you need to select a real device cloud, which is the best choice for obtaining the best test result for testing your native mobile apps in real-world conditions.

Decide your Devices

Since the Snake game was released in Nokia, we have seen lost changes in mobile app development and devices. Even though every mobile application has unique features, all organizations must be ready to face heavy competition. Moreover, it is essential to update in the Google Play Store and must be one of the best among the 3.6 million existing apps. So, it is crucial to take time to work before launching the best in reality. 

Users are the major success behind our app's success, so it is mandatory to test the app across all devices, whether it is user-friendly and the best in quality. Working efficiently with these concepts will help you deliver the best and most high-quality product in the market. 

The best action is examining the documentation and learn which Android versions your features will need. This will eventually aid in the development of a reliable device matrix. For instance, the calendar API offers calendar-related features like updating Events, managing Invitations, A Set Reminders, Access Calendars, Sync with Other Apps, etc. However, API was first made available in Android 4.0, and later, that operating system version became a must if you plan to use it. 

Decide on Emulators or Simulators

After choosing the devices you intend to perform testing, you need to create the matrix. As we mentioned above, you go with real devices. If it is not budget-friendly, requires the purchase of a device, and takes lots of time and money to create a lab, you can choose a Virtual device. 

Virtual devices come in two varieties

A simulator

Emulator

Now, we shall look at few strategies: 

Have a precise understanding of Tools

Utilization of tools helps you work efficiently by bridging your testing scripting and converting them into planned actions. So, having a profound understanding will help you work more efficiently and help you face issues confidently. 

Organize your requirements

Before beginning your testing process and utilization tools, you should organize your requirements. For example, Native and browser APIs must be thoroughly tested if you're developing a hybrid project. End-to-end testing, integration testing, and other concepts are also options.

Evaluate your team's skills

After gathering the requirements, begin evaluating the team's skills. As a first step, you should understand the tools that your team is familiar with. This helps your team work efficiently, but if you find any new tools launched in the industry, adopt them because it will help complete the testing quickly. 

Consider existing tool frameworks

Always discuss the progression of the project with the team. Moreover, you can consult the team members about continuing with existing tools or adopting new ones.

With our cutting-edge technology, LambdaTest is prepared to assist you as the need for native applications grows. Cross-platform compatibility is made possible, and QA teams can save time and money by using the LambdaTest mobile app testing solution on iOS simulators and Android emulators. 

Document religiously

Documentation is crucial to optimizing your testing strategy and other software development phases. These are as follows:

Software requirement document

Test plan document

Test case requirement

Test strategy

Test outline reports

Bug reports document

Test analysis

Test data document

Unanimous Test Frameworks

Automation testing frameworks are best to adopt because they have cross-platform abilities. The same tests may be carried out on Android and iOS applications with the help of cross-platform mobile app testing tools. Utilizing such frameworks will also help you minimize future manual labor.

Dividing your Automation Tests

In the software development life cycle, automation tests were added to reduce time spent on repeated processes. We must decide what we want to manage ourselves and what to leave to the system to set these goals. We need to know how to separate our automation tests to test a mobile application more effectively.

How Beta Testing will help

A crucial stage in honing your mobile app strategy is beta testing. Thus, how does it assist? You learn about the flaws and faults in your application that might have crept into the final result. As a result, the general public receives your application without error. However, this tactic might be viewed as a benefit for the entire company. 

By implementing these strategies, mobile app developers and testers can ensure that their applications meet user expectations for functionality, performance, security, and user experience in 2024 and beyond.