Native vs Hybrid / PhoneGap App Development Comparison
Native app development utilizes the native programming languages of the devices to construct the app. Objective C and the new Swift is the native programming language for iPhone.
Hybrid apps are made using advanced technologies like: CSS, JavaScript and HTML5, then put inside a native container such Adobe Phone Gap. These native containers execute the web application code and package it into an app.
Both technologies: native and hybrid (HTML5, CSS and Javascript) can create apps which are downloadable for Android and iPhone, at apple iTunes app Store or Google Play.
There are benefits and drawbacks to using either technology. In this article I will go over some of the advantages and disadvantages of using hybrid app development (HTML5, CSS and JavaScript) vs native app development technologies.
I. Design of Interfaces
Maximum mobile interfaces can be executed using either hybrid app or native app development technologies; though, there is added flexibility in designing these interfaces using PhoneGap / hybrid app development technology. Hybrid app development uses CSS3 and HTML5 that have far greater skills when designing interfaces with highly dynamic content and many form factors.
Still, there are some interface design issues and drawbacks that may come up when using hybrid app development.
Sometimes it is consuming and tedious to implement some complicated interfaces and standard native user experience designs with hybrid app development technology.
The native app development environment provides tools & design widgets for making some standard interfaces with native user interaction experience which are not currently available using hybrid app development tools. So, it is easier to create native app user expereince using native app development environment.
II. Cost:
It is more cost effective to form mobile apps using PhoneGap / hybrid app development technology stack. PhoneGap / Hybrid apps influence diverse and high quality sets of libraries as well as providing the tools necessary to lessen the development time.
Nevertheless, keep in mind that if you would require to create a specific native feel and native user experience, it can be more costly and time consuming to design & develop some native user experience with hybrid app development technology.
Moreover, with hybrid app development, you can develop it once & give in to it to all of the platforms, (Windows Phone, iPhone, Android) by PhoneGap expertise. So, you would be saving money by not having to make the app by means of native programming language of each platform.
Below table shows the average cost of mobile app development using native vs hybrid mobile app development:
III. Development Timeline
Hybrid apps are faster and easier to develop and deploy. Though, if there are a lot of complicated and native features that are away from the capability of the hybrid app Framework and Environment, then it will be more time consuming to build for hybrid apps.
IV. User Experience and Performance
Native apps offer better performance, responsiveness & fluid experience & a user can navigate & relate with the app deprived of any loading delays.
Hybrid apps lean towards having certain user interaction delays, and users can warn that the app is not as responsive at times.
V. Maintainability
PhoneGap / Hybrid apps is more viable as far as the developer selects a right framework like Ionic, KendoUI, jQuery mobile, etc. This is for the reason that it is easier to preserve the Web app technology (CSS, JavaScript & HTML) than a native app technology.
Also, it is essential to note that if the correct framework is not used for hybrid app & the code is not written appropriately, the app will not be supportable.
VI. Limitations
Implementing many native features and new technologies are easily adoptable and built into the native mobile app Environment Tools that are provided for each platform as Native apps are developed using native app Design Tools that are provided for the purpose of building the mobile apps for the platform.
When building hybrid apps, the developer depends on the mobile app development framework & tools and its abilities and provided features to build the app. So, if the framework and tools used is not conversant to provide some new features, the developer will be at loss & cannot implement features that are not provided by the hybrid app development Framework and Tools.
So, depending on the app feature requirements, hybrid app environment may have boundaries on applying numerous native functionalities.
VII. Security
Native apps may offer improved security environment, depending on the security necessities of the project; yet, most of the security matters are generated due to the developer’s lack of experience in security & server-side security issues.
VIII. Support and Resources
There are many available and support resources for building native mobile apps, as native app development Environment delivers a lot of options & resources to develop for mobile apps.
IX. Tools and Debugging
Native development offers improved development environment & tooling to test and debug the work, so it is much simpler and less time consuming to search and resolve bugs by native development Tools
X. Platform Independent
One of the main benefits of hybrid app development is that the developer can code it once & then using a technology such as Adobe PhoneGap, submit the app to all platforms (Android, iPhone, Blackberry and Windows Phone)
XI. Popularity
Since native app Environment delivers a smoother user experience and unlikely to have feature restrictions, rather than hybrid app environment, many of the large app firms use native app development environment.
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