We all are using mobile apps for our day to day work. According to the survey, in 2017, users around the world downloaded almost 197 billion Android apps and over 25 billion ios apps. App development industry has gained momentum in the past few years and has been growing higher since. With the increasing craze for mobile apps, there’s one massive problem that has arisen for app development companies- Finding skilled developers who can develop for Android and iOS.
If you are looking to develop an app from scratch, for both iOS and android platform, React native is the best solution. React native is a framework that can be used to develop cross platform apps. It is a javascript-based framework created by Facebook to develop apps supported by ios and android platforms. One of the best benefit of using React is reduced development time, reusable code and app components. But there are some differences between the use of React Native for both the platforms. So, here we’ll see the significant differences between React native app development for android and ios. But before digging to it, let’s see the reasons of why react native is gaining momentum.
React native allows you to alter the user interface of an app for both android and iOS development.
The framework is open-source in nature. It’s structure is all set to become compatible with macOS and Windows. Rather than rewriting a code from scratch, you can reuse the already existing written code. You can it by using the React Native’s components in the code of the app you developed or reuse the same code.
Writing a code from scratch and learning to code in java and swift is tough and time-consuming. But react native solves this issue, rather than having expertise in both, you just need to know Javascript. This makes app development quick and easy.
React native allows you to develop a smooth and simple to navigate user interface in both operating systems at the same time. UI is the reason of its popularity. Prior to this, developers were needed to focus on one type of operating system. React Native resolved this issue and made improvement more comfortable and balanced for the two platforms.
Also know the reasons to build apps with react native at- Why you should build your app with react native?
Android and iOS app development significantly differs from one other. These differences arise when you develop your app using React Native. Here are some of the main aspects where the development process differs.
Also know the most common mistakes to avoid in react development at- Most Common Mistakes To Avoid In React Development
If you are building your React Native app with React Native CLI, you will use different tools for iOS and Android.
iOS-
You will need an Xcode tool to build iOS apps with React Native. It installs the iOS simulators and all the required tools to build your iOS app. You need a Mac OS to work with Xcode. Meaning that you need a Mac OS if you want to build iOS apps with React Native, or iOS apps in general.
Android-
While building android apps with React Native, you will need a complete different toolset. First of all, you would need to install the Java development Kit (JDK). The tool that is comparable to Xcode for Android is, Android Studio.
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If you completely want to do away with them, you have an option of using Expo.
React native has several elements to be used but the results differ according to the platform they are implemented on. For instance, picker component would display a different outcome on an iOS simulator and a different outcome on the android emulator.
React native provides a cross-platform development due to the shared code and developers expect to build both versions of apps with less efforts. iOS apps are quite minimalist in design, while android is drawn towards the material design principle. When you use shared code in developing, you need to ensure that the app is suitable as per the natural look and feel for both platforms. Multitask panels in iOS have small tabs whereas interchangeable tabs of Android’s multitasking panel are almost of screen size. Hence, developers need to focus on these differences while developing on a shared platform.
The android include icons with transparent background and shadows whereas, icons of iOS apps are round-cornered squares. Also, there is a difference in navigation patterns for both operating systems. Android’s native navigation-bar has back and refresh buttons whereas in iOS, back button on the top is screen-specific and also works right swipe gesture.
It is necessary to consider all these differences for developers while working on app development through React Native.
When you work on a cross-platform app, it is necessary to consider the difference in styles elements. Styles added using React Native look different in android and iOS because both operating systems might not support that styling. For instance, you’ve added shadow style in your app, it won’t be visible in the Android version because android does not support this styling. Thus, developers should keep in mind the style differences and use the styles that are supported by both operating systems.
Do you want to add third-party libraries in the app using React Native? There is a difference between iOS and Android systems is that- you can’t just use the react-native link called “library name” to get the job done. Rather, you have to link third-party libraries manually. Now, this won’t be an easy using React Native. But why? Because you need distinct knowledge about the android and ios coding. To link libraries manually on these systems, you need to use Java and Objective C language. If the library you are using has the required documentation, you probably won’t be needed to do anything manually. But if it doesn’t, you should know this difference between android and iOS systems to develop apps.
Release process is one of the biggest step after mobile app development. Web app’s release are generally a breeze as compared to mobile apps.
Android apps are released to Google Play store. This release process is easier than iOS. One can automate release activities such as code signing, creating snapshots and so on using tools like Fastlane. It helps to reduce the time spent on manual release.
To release the iOS apps, you need to go through the App store. Basically the apple store guidelines to release and review process are contrasted compare to the Android release process. Thoroughly analyse it to get approved by App Store.
Starting from the in-app features to design elements to testing tools, development of android and ios mobile app development using React Native differs on various levels. Developers should know the above mentioned differences and accordingly work to avoid bugs during implementation. Lots of popular companies like Uber Eats, Instagram and Airbnb use the shared platform of React native.