Mobile App Development Info For New Software Developers

Do you want to become a mobile developer? If yes, then this article is very helpful for you. As you know that technology is getting advanced by the day and now mobile phones have become an important part of our lives. This technology shift has opened up a lot of opportunities for all kinds of developers and due to this, many people are coming into the mobile development field. So if you are also interested in learning about mobile development, then this new developers guide to mobile development will provide you everything you need. After reading this article, you will have more clarity about the field of mobile development. So without wasting a single second, let’s get started.

What Is A Mobile Developer?

A mobile developer is a person who only focuses on developing applications for mobile phones. He creates applications for all types of operating systems. Be it android or IOS, a mobile developer can easily develop applications as per the need of his clients. However, to become a mobile developer, it is very important to learn different programming languages and skills to be a good programmer but the good news is that now many platforms are available where one can easily earn any programming languages.

Differences Between A Mobile Developer And A Full Stack Developer

Many people, mostly beginners get confused between a mobile developer and a full stack developer. Though they sound similar but that doesn’t mean they are the same. So before jumping into the major differences, you must know what a full stack developer actually is.

An application is generally divided into two parts, which are the front end and the back end. A full-stack developer is a professional who is competent in working at the front and back ends of an application. This means that a full-stack developer has all the knowledge of HTML, Javascript, and whichever language is being used. This person has an idea of all the layers of 3-tier models, which includes the presentation layer, business logic layer, and database layer. Here are some differences between a mobile developer and a full stack developer:

Difficulty

If you compare a full stack developer with a mobile developer in terms of difficulty in programming, then you will find out that mobile development can be slightly more difficult to learn when you need to interface with the phone’s hardware directly and optimize code to run effectively on a mobile phone. Though it doesn’t mean full-stack development is easy, it also involves learning multiple front-end and back-end programming languages but isn’t as bound by hardware constraints and publishing environments as a mobile developer.

On the flip side, a mobile developer has to master the languages they are intended to learn. A mobile developer’s work is very specialized and along with this, he also has to learn programming tools such as Android studio or Apple’s xCode.

Versatility

In comparison to mobile developers, full-stack developers are more versatile. They have more flexibility and liberty because they are knowledgeable in all aspects of web development. The main difference is that they can take care of both servers’ management and web design. Due to their amazing versatility, they can handle different products. From E-com stores to social media platforms, they can work on everything. Coming to mobile developers, they don’t have versatility as they can only create applications for mobile devices.

How Much A Mobile Developer Can Make

This is one of the most asked questions in the programming field and the simple answer to this question is that you can make decent money. Here are some factors that affect a mobile developer salary:

1- Platform And Programming Languages

This is the main factor that affects how much a mobile developer can make. In today’s time, 90% of the mobile application run on IOS and Android. In the US, the salary of both the IOS and android developer is almost the same but the popularity of both systems differs. In general, Android is more popular but still companies that hire IOS developers pay decent money to them.

2- Experience

The level of experience of a mobile developer also affects its salary. For example- a person with 2 years of experience will get a slightly higher salary in comparison to a fresher. The entry-level is always a little lower but once you start gaining experience, your salary also increases. Coming to the number, if you have knowledge of programming languages, then you can make around an average of $105,220 a year and even more if you successfully brand yourself and have skills in software design and project management. This figure is of a US-based mobile developer, the numbers may vary from country to country.

What Are The Different Mobile Platforms And The Challenges Programming For Each?

However, there are many mobile platforms available but most of them are not used that much now. If you talk about demand and popularity, only two platforms are the most popular, which includes:

1- Android

Android is the most used mobile operating system and it has over millions of users. Not only this, more than 4 million applications are running on Android. Now you can imagine the craze of this operating system. Each developer has to use different ways to make their application stand out from others and honestly, it is not that easy. All android developers face challenges, some of the most common among them are:

• Programming Language- At present, mobile developers can choose from two programming languages, which are JAVA and Kotlin. Both languages are loved by developers, but sometimes it becomes confusing to choose the right one for application development. Some tools have been made to create Python apps for android as well but this requires bundling the Python environment into your distributed application which will make it much larger in the app store.

• Security Issues- When it comes to security threats, android applications are very vulnerable. However, Google keeps releasing security patches to fix security issues of Android OS but these patches won’t work for the issues, which are generated through hardware changes. And it is a bit challenging for developers to secure these kinds of emerging security issues

2- IOS

IOS was released in 2007, and since its release, IOS has been a very famous operating system. Though it is not that popular as android but still people who use it, love it. To keep their users happy, Apple keeps launching new phones with latest IOS but it is not easy for IOS developers to create apps for this platform, these are some challenges they face:

• App Compatibility- One of the biggest challenges that most IOS developers face is creating apps that are compatible with all IOS versions. As you know apple releases different IOS every year, this increases the work for IOS developers. They have to test their application in different IOS versions and make changes accordingly

• Maintaining Battery Life- Making energy-efficient apps are very important because people directly uninstall the application that drains the battery. Developers have to optimize the apps and make sure that the application does not suck battery while running on the background

Cross-Platform Languages

Cross-platform are those languages that let the developers create applications for different platforms by writing a program only once. Cross-platform apps run on multiple OS with little modifications.

• Cordova- It is an open-source mobile development frame with which you can create a cross-platform application by using standard web technologies such as HTML5, Javascript, and CSS3.

• React Native- React native is developed by Facebook and it is also an open-source framework, which lets users develop cross platforms application with the help of Javascript.

• Xamarin- It is a framework to develop cross-platform apps but the major difference is that it provides a single language C#. App developed by using Xamarin can be used in android, IOS, and Windows.

Publishing Apps On Google And Apple Store And Make Money Passively

If you can create good android or IOS applications, then you can also generate some good revenue. All you have to do is publish them in the Google and Apple store. Here are some ways that can help you make good money by publishing your applications:

• Show Ads- If you have developed a game in which you think people will spend a lot of time, then you should publish it and start showing ads. However, you will need approval but once you are approved, you can make good money

• Sell a pro version- You can create a free app but add paid features for users. These features can include remove ads or unlock new equipment

• Sell Your Data- If your app has some decent audience, then you can collect the anonymous data and sell it to those that need it to run their company or business. This is a good revenue-generating model where you can make money passively

Conclusion

Some years back, mobile developers were not that popular and only a few opportunities were available for them. But now with the rise in the start-up culture, developers are getting amazing opportunities. It doesn’t matter what type of developer you are, you can easily earn a living and make good money. Mobile development has become a worldwide known profession and because of this, competition in this field has also increased a lot.

That’s why it is very important to learn the app developing skills properly in order to get the best results. All the important information regarding mobile development is mentioned above. Hope this article will clear some of your queries and give you some valuable information.


One thought on “Mobile App Development Info For New Software Developers

  1. Becoming a mobile app developer can be a really interesting and lucrative career. So many enterprises are looking to build their own apps, whether consumer- or employee-facing. If you end up working for a software development vendor you will probably get the chance to work on a range of projects. One month you might be building a dating app and the next – an insurance or fintech solution.

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