Best Practices for Testing Cross-Platform Mobile Applications

The advanced tools have made it easier for the businesses to create cross-platform mobile applications by leveraging a single code. The developers can further use the specialized tools to update the application quickly across multiple devices and platforms. However, it is also significant for the business to customize applications for each platform to boost its usability and the UX. Similarly, the business must test the cross-platform mobile applications thoroughly and effectively to make it popular and profitable in the long run.

Best Practices for Cross-Platform Mobile App Testing

Define the Functional Requirements of the App Clearly

To identify all the flaws and defects in the application, the quality assurance professionals must clearly understand its functional requirements. The clearly defined functional requirements help businesses to test the application effectively across multiple platforms, networks and devices. Businesses must prepare a comprehensive list of functional requirements of the application and share it with the testers from the very beginning. This list will make it easier for the testers to identify the expected bugs in the application by testing the application in most appropriate scenarios.

Follow Guidelines of Each Mobile Platform

Every mobile platform requires application developers to follow certain set of guidelines. So, each business must follow the standards recommended by each mobile platform on functionality, content and UI (user interface) design. When the application complies with these guidelines, it will run seamlessly on the mobile platform. Businesses need to ensure that both the developers and the testers know the guidelines recommended by each targeted mobile platform. The understanding will help the professionals to test the application on each platform according to the standards and regulations.

Maintain Balance between Real Devices and Simulators

While testing a cross platform mobile application, no business can afford to invest in a variety of mobile devices powered by major mobile platforms. Thus, businesses use emulators and simulators to test mobile applications without spending huge. But, businesses should also remember that emulators and simulators don’t provide 100% reliable results. Hence, it must create a test laboratory containing both, the real devices and emulators. It is also vital for the project manager to split the tests between real devices and emulators. For example, emulators can be used for performing integration and unit testing. On the other hand, testers must use real devices to conduct device profiling and performance, regression, security and compatibility testing.

Select the Right Testing Tools

No business can actually rely on manual testing to assess a cross platform mobile application effectively. It is important for the businesses to set up test labs with the right test automation tools. Each business has to opt from the several cross platform mobile applications testing tools including Squish, MonkeyTalk, MobileCloud and more. Most of these tools are cloud based, and assess applications through cross platform scripts. But businesses must also remember that each of these tools has its own strengths and shortcomings. Therefore, it must pick the right tool (and framework) according to the specific requirements of the project. A business can also think over investing in testing tools that shore up multiple targeted mobile platforms.

Test the App in Real-User Conditions

To assess the functionality, UI and performance of a mobile application, the testers must test it in various conditions and environments. It is also important for the business to explore ways to test the cross platform mobile application in real user conditions. Businesses also have a number of options to test mobile application in real user conditions. For example, it can facilitate field testing to make it easier for the testers to test the application in various conditions and under different network speeds. Similarly, businesses can also opt for crowd sourced testing to get the applications tested by the real users across different platforms, conditions and devices.

It is also imperative for the business to make and implement custom testing strategies for each cross platform mobile application. The comprehensive strategy makes it easier for the quality assurance professionals to assess the application thoroughly across different devices and platforms according to the specific objectives and requirements of the business.

Looking for a mobile application testing service provider? BugRaptors is a CMMi5 certified quality assurance company with an extensive experience in web and mobile application testing. Visit the website here for more insights. 

Read More

Physical Devices or Emulators: What to choose for Compatibility Testing?

There are certain valid reasons to consider the usage of emulators as a means of testing. There are many free emulators available in the market that offer various screen resolutions or device mimicking that allow you to view what your product shall look like on a specified device. Another reason for the use of emulators is that the typical user interface issues, like screen sizes, can be found and alleviated on real devices only. They further allow real time data extraction, which provides the developers with the necessary information required to debug issues.

However, we believe that they are not sufficient enough for the final testing of a product purely because they are not able to cover all the functionalities that need to be tested to ensure the compatibility of the product. From our own experience, testing on physical devices provides most accurate, clearest results. By doing so, you avoid a common pitfall of using an emulator which is finding inaccurate results. Although it is completely impossible to cover the full range of devices available, below are some key reasons to why we feel that you should use real devices:

The Look and Feel

Emulators cannot guarantee the look and feel of an application. It also cannot adequately judge the responsiveness of the applications on a particular device via emulation. The other look and feel drawbacks of using emulators are that you will be unable to test the brightness of the display, the color scheme, and the pixel density under the varying lighting conditions or while moving around.

Device orientation is another key reason for using physical devices. Emulators are not reliable enough to authorize how your application shall respond when the device is being switched from the portrait to landscape view, or to replicate the actual user experience.

The Usability

An emulator may not be able to replicate the real user experience of a touch screen device. Traditional computers utilize the power and precision of a mouse control, something that is not used in the everyday lives by those who use mobile phones and tablets to access applications. With the continuing increase of handheld devices over traditional computers for accessing information, execution is more commonly performed by hand now. This is slower and less accurate; hence, it is important that the UI reflects this form of operation.

The Connectivity

Testing with emulators does not provide an accurate account of the conditions and the scenarios the applications will face when being accessed by a user who is moving around. They are unable to account for the real world effects such as the location, signal strength of the carrier, or simply the different between the indoor and the outdoor conditions.

The Software

Despite being new to the industry, the mobile sector is much more fragmented, with the key providers being iOS, Android and Symbian. The developers have to work in multiple development environments, which complicates the development and the testing processes. The newer operating system will have the capability to support the newer functionalities, actions and render something that the older operating system versions shall not. Emulators are incapable to describe this difference.

The Hardware

Memory related issues are commonly found in mobile compatibility testing. Device fragmentation has increased significantly over the past year with more than 4000 device configurations found this year. Emulators have difficulty in replicating the user experience between the low and the high end devices. This is because the processor of the PC is 10 times more powerful than that of a given android device.

While the emulators are able to test some major functionality, they are highly limited and need a physical device to ensure if the application is tested completely. There is no other way other than using the physical device itself for testing the power consumption and proficiency of your application. If the application causes stark strain on a user’s device, then they are highly suspected to continue using it.

Final words

One of the key reasons organizations opt for using emulators over physical devices is the cost of procuring abundant devices. But, any real physical device testing is preferable over none. Emulators are a useful tool for testing devices, and certainly have their place, but to provide accurate, realistic evaluation of the user experience and an in-depth analysis of the functionality.

A probable solution to this can be to hire an external test lab like the one provided by BugRaptors. BugRaptors is a CMMi5 certified quality assurance company with an extensive experience in Compatibility Testing and various testing services. Visit the website for more insights.

Read More

BOTS: the new perimeter and how to perform testing on it?

A bot is software that is designed to automate different types of tasks you would usually do on your own like, adding an appointment to your calendar or fetching and displaying information and making a dinner reservation.

 These are the progressively common form of bots, chatbots, simulates conversation. They often live in the messaging apps or are at least designed to look that way and it should feel like you’re chatting like you are with human.

Read More Here at https://www.bugraptors.com/blog/bots-new-perimeter-perform-testing

Read More

The Fundamentals of Mobile Application Security Testing

At present, the reaches of customers have stretched from PC's to mobile phones and this makes mobile application testing even more important. Android and IOS applications have surfaced for the mobile genre and both have terrific applications that can easily attract customers. While users enjoy the most of these apps, how easy is it to test them?

It is really challenging to test Android and iOS apps as the users lay unique expectations and the testers have to test in accordance of their expectations. The challenges in mobile app testing can range anywhere from Device Variations to Availability of Tools to Network Bypass. Also unveiled are many third-party applications that are compatible with advanced mobile versions.  All these are featured by the concerns of performance and user acceptance that demand thorough and infallible mobile application testing. Another important aspect is mobile application security testing. It aims to help to reduce possible security threats and risk exposures and in mobile applications.

IOS Application Testing:

IOS is an operating system used majorly in mobile technology, such as smart-phones and tablets by Apple Inc. They have suave designs and are very user friendly. IOS application market is a success in the technology market and is often in the newscast for good. The iOS application testers are conscious of the fact that testing an iOS application is different than testing any other application as it is a closed operating system. IOS testing also mediates development which makes it all the more challenging to test. But there are certain measures that can make IOS testing light on the brain:

• Considering Fragmentation
•   Resoluting for Privacy
•   Preferring Beta-testing

The best tools for iOS app testing are:

•  Appium
•   iOS Driver
•   iOS UI Automation
•  Frank
• Calabash
•    Monkey Talk
•    KIF or Keep It Functional

Android Application Testing:

Testing android applications can be a complicated task because of the diversity in the devices which is a major challenge of mobile application testing. In this, unlike IOS, the differences lie between screen sizes, capabilities and limitations are precise as all the devices are different to each other. The testers are well acquainted with the fact that compatibility is a huge restraint since mobile applications can be arranged across several devices. Avoiding complex structures and segmenting them into smaller steps is one way to make Android Application Testing easy.

The best tools to enhance Android Application Testing are:

• MonkeyTalk
•  Selendroid
•  Calabash
•  Ranorex
• Appium
•  Robotium
• The UI Automator

Bugraptors is software testing company that provides proficient mobile and web testing services, automation testing, manual testing, load and performance testing, and more. For more information, visit the website. 

Read More

Challenges While Performing Mobile Testing

Mobile market growth is increasing day by day. Mobile industry has been skyrocketing for several years, as consumers spend more time on multiple devices and mostly utilize mobile content.

The hardware has improved dramatically over the last few years, but it’s the software that truly unleashes the potential of devices. What’s really driving is the incredible success of smart phones and tablets in the application market.

Read more at https://www.bugraptors.com/blog/challenges-in-mobile-testing

Read More