Saving time and money is important in any industry, and mobile app development is no exception. With shorter development cycles and increasing consumer demand, a robust testing strategy is vital for any business hoping to release a successful product. Here’s a quick overview of the factors that are crucial to the testing process for mobile apps – without covering them all, you risk serious setbacks.

Operations

In a testing context, ‘operations’ includes all the ways in which your app interacts with the user’s phone in terms of connectivity and interruptions. Connectivity concerns the presence or lack of a mobile data or WiFi connection, and how the app reacts to things like airplane mode, intermittent signal or a switch between 3G and LTE. Interruptions are things that may interfere with the use of the app, such as phone calls, text messages, phone updates or notifications from other apps. To be ready for launch, an app needs to be tested in all potential scenarios.

Functions and user experience

If your app doesn’t serve its core functions, it isn’t much of an app at all. Functionality is an important part of any project, and can be divided into many different areas.

• If an internet connection is required, does it ask you to turn WiFi or data on if it’s not already?
• Will it allow a user to save or upload files correctly?
• Does it feel easy and comfortable to use?
• What if the user does something they weren’t meant to do?

These are just some of the many questions to be asked when testing a mobile app.

Mobile devices

Mobile apps need to work with both the hardware and the software of the targeted device(s). The key focus here is what elements the app depends on and whether these elements differ between devices. For example, your app might perform a function where it plays an audio file through the user’s earphones. If a manufacturer alters the way this feature works on their device, it’s important to make sure this doesn’t affect the use of your app. This extends to other features and permissions like the keyboard, camera and GPS for example.

Structure and compatibility

You may have designed the slickest app to hit the market in years, but it won’t count for much if it encounters compatibility issues. Beyond making sure the app works with the device itself, for example, you also need to test it with any browsers that it might redirect to. But this just scratches the surface: you also need to test with different operating systems (and versions of each OS), geographical restrictions, old devices, SD cards and all manner of other factors. You will also need to make sure updates of the app do not affect these in any way.

Data security

Security is becoming more and more important to consumers by the day, and for good reason. Data breaches are an increasing risk in the modern world, and any app must have comprehensive protections in place to ensure no information is compromised. Be aware of what data your app needs to save, collect, process or send in order to function properly, and ensure this can’t be accessed without authorisation. This may include user logins, phone numbers, addresses, bank details, contact lists, files and just about anything else.

The value of a robust testing strategy

Due to the nature of mobile apps, testing is a complex but vital stage of development that will have a huge impact on the outcome of the project. At crowdsprint, we develop detailed strategies for thorough and effective crowd testing to ensure our clients’ mobile apps are well-equipped for launch. Check our pricing and request a quote here.