Smartphone applications are now inseparable part of our lives and change the way we live, communicate, shop, work and relax. For any business or developer, the creation of a mobile apps is a big step.
One of the most important decisions that need to be made during the final stages of designing an application is whether to create a native or hybrid application. Each of those has its pros and cons and depends on factors such as budget, time, and the target audience.
In this blog we will look into the distinctions between the native and the hybrid apps as well as elaborate on the pros and cons of each so that you are armed with the proper knowledge to evaluate which type of app fits your project.
What is the difference between Native and Hybrid mobile applications?
Native applications on the other hand are native mobile apps that have been coded for a certain operation system for instance, iOS or Android. These applications are developed using native programming languages of the platform (Swift and Objective-C for iOS and Java and Kotlin for Android) and fully optimize the use of OS facilities.
Hybrid mobile apps on the other hand are developed with web tools such as HTML, CSS and JavaScript among others. They are actually web applications modified and put into the native UI containers, capable in running on various OS. Many of these are developed using Frameworks like React Native, Ionic, or Flutter, which allows the same code to be compiled for both, iOS and Android.
Advantages of having native mobile apps and disadvantages of native mobile apps.
Pros
Superior Performance:
Native mobile apps are designed for a particular operating system due to which they operate better and execute fairly quickly. As native apps work closer to the surface of the operating system, they are well suited for hardware and software intensive tasks such as gaming or augmented reality.
Better User Experience (UX):
The greatest advantage of developing native ones is that these applications are more user-friendly because they are created following specific platform standards. Seeing that users are already familiar with the app’s design language, the user satisfaction achieved tends to be higher, as the user interface interaction with the app in question is more natural.
Access to Full Device Features:
Native apps can have full access to device on-board features and APIs which include push notification, GPS, camera, accelerometer, offline mode, etc. This in turn causes the access to lead to more robust functionality.
Enhanced Security:
Native apps will be able to take advantage of the inherent security that is offered by the mobile operating system. They have a wider range of choices protecting the important user information and avoiding cyber threats.
Cons
Higher Development Costs:
Another drawback identifying with native applications is their uniqueness, which different for different platforms, and businesses will face the necessity to recruit many different development groups. This greatly extends both the development cost and time compared to such hybrid apps.
Longer Development Time:
Since two stand-alone applications are being built, the process can actually be much lengthier. Every platform has its approval and release system and because of that it even longer to launch the app.
Maintenance and Updates:
Supporting and updating native applications can be resource consuming because app updates have to be deployed to both the iOS and the Android versions of the app.
Hybrid mobile apps can be one of the best solutions when it comes to creating efficient resource and time utilization in the development departments of different companies:
Pros
Cost-Effective Development:
In this case, developers are able to write a single piece of code that addresses all of the different platforms. This means that it is much cheaper and more time efficient than the options of developing a website from the ground up, making it ideal for companies with a limited budget or time frame.
Faster Time to Market:
The main benefit of hybrid app is a perfect opportunity for the business to target iOS and Android users at one time, which makes the launch time greatly accelerated. It is especially useful for the startups or the companies, who seek to find the competitive advantage over the competitors and enter the market more rapidly.
Easier Maintenance:
Compared to native apps, the process of maintaining a hybrid app is far easier and less complicated. As all the platforms share the same programming code the updates, fixes and new features can be deployed jumping from one platform to the other.
Access to Basic Device Features:
By utilizing plugins and libraries, hybrid apps can have limited interactions with native apps features such as the camera, GPS, and push notifications among others.
Cons
Lower Performance:
Hybrid apps using a web view to display an application may have performance issues especially when dealing with graphic intensive or animation and intricate interactions. This makes hybrid apps less suitable for apps which involve heavy computation by the app hardware.
Limited User Experience:
cross-platform apps might be challenging to offer the perfect UI/UX design and first-rate responsiveness of native apps. They can deviate a little bit from the guidelines of the specific platform, which could make the experience to the users not that smooth.
Access to Advanced Features:
Since hybrid apps can use a portion of this API, it can be stated that they cannot overall integrate with the device to the extent a native app can. They also mentioned that add-on options such as augmented reality or intricate security may not translate well to an optimized hybrid system.
Dependence on Third-Party Libraries:
Still, the plugin makes hybrid apps dependent on external modules to access features in a given device; if these plugins are outdated or have bad coding standards, the chances are high that the hybrid apps will have compatibility problems or bugs.
Picking the Correct Strategy for your Mobile Application
Choosing between a native or a hybrid app is contingent on the four factors including the cost plan that is available, the complexity of the define app and the users.
Select Native if your application is demanding, complex or is aimed to offer a perfect performance. This is especially if the app is a gaming app, app that will rely on Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR) or app that will frequently be used offline.
Select Hybrid if you plan to build an app fast and inexpensive at the same time targeting multiple platforms. But if your app is rather simple – for example, a content-based app or a business app – then, probably, hybrid development will be just what you need.
First and foremost, top benefits and major drawbacks of external or internal development option shall be considered nd tailored to the specifics of the particular project in order to make the right choice in terms of the further development of the mobile app.
Conclusion
Native as well as hybrid mobile apps are suitable for use in the mobile environment. Native apps offer performance and user experience advantages and yet are expensive and require more time for development. A hybrid approach means less cost and having the possibility to get the app to the market faster but, again, with performance and device capabilities sacrificed.
This way you are able to make a right decision that will fit your project needs, timeframe, and allow you to develop a successful mobile application with the help of our team & specialized services.