Best Practices of Testing for Mobile Apps

In the current era, mobile apps have turned into a crucial part of our everyday lives. From managing finances to ordering food, mobile applications have revolutionized the way we interact with advanced technology. That’s why it is suggested to test early in the software development process and execute rigorous Mobile app testing.

Statistical Overview

In the year2022, the no. of mobile users stood at 7.26 billion, with forecasts suggesting that mobile users worldwide are likely to hit 7.49 billion

Hence, with the mobile application market growing fast, ensuring the consistency and overall quality of these applications is more crucial than ever.

What is Mobile Application Testing?

Mobile Testing is the method of validating a mobile app (iOS or Android) for functionality, usability, and overall performance. This form of testing allows companies to validate if their mobile apps function as intended and meet end-users’ requirements using automation testing  or manual testing  techniques and tools.

When testing mobile applications, QA teams should confirm that they execute flawlessly across multiple device configurations. This includes testing the application across multiple OS versions, screen resolutions, and network bandwidths.

Types of Mobile Applications

Let us know the difference between web, native, and hybrid apps. The three broad categories of mobile applications available today are:

• Native Apps: Native mobile applications are mainly designed to run on a specific platform (Google Android and Apple iOS). Native apps can be developed with Swift/ Objective-C for iOS and Kotlin or Java for Android, while cross-platform applications can be built with testing frameworks such as NativeScript, ReactNative, and Flutter.
• Responsive Web Apps: Responsive web applications are designed to be accessed on a mobile browser. They are either a progressive web app (PWA) or a responsive website version, adding extra mobile-friendly traits to the original site.
• Hybrid Apps: Hybrid applications are perfectly designed to combine the traits of both web and native applications. Hybrid applications can be installed via application stores the same as native applications, but they might have a few native functionalities, like using device traits not obtainable through the browser or gaining access to files stored on the gadget.

Why is Mobile App Testing Significant?

One of the prime purposes of designing and developing mobile applications is to grow the business and reach the maximum users number globally. But, what if developed mobile applications are defective and hard to use by the user?  There is a higher chance that the consumers will uninstall the mobile applications. This is something any organization wouldn’t wish their end user to uninstall the mobile applications and shift to their competitors. Here, mobile application testing is truly significant as it gives info on the application’s functionality.

In order to make certain that mobile applications meet end-user needs and goals, robust and adequate mobile app testing is imperative. But, if the mobile applications aren’t tested, there is a high possibility of a prevalence of flaws or bugs that might disrupt the app’s functionality. This gives the worst user experience; they might uninstall or delete an application. Hence, mobile app testing is a crucial process that shouldn’t be missed.

Advantages of Mobile App Testing

Some of the advantages of mobile app testing are mentioned below:

• High end-user reliability

When you get assured of the mobile application’ functioning, usability, and performance, it tends to give a positive end-user experience. Users are more expected to use the application and recommend it to their friends resulting in high revenues and a good reputation in the QA and software industry. 

• Make sure UI (User Interface)/ UX (User Experience) Usability

Mobile app testing enables the QA testers to test apps from the end-user perspective. They scrutinize the mobile application’s user-friendliness and usability by simulating normal users’ actions and test their feel and look. Testers detect any navigation concerns and logical flow and testing apps on varied screen sizes and devices by running mobile app testing. This helps to assess the UI/UX usability of the mobile application.

• Find Security Vulnerabilities

Mobile app testing is also executed to validate and check any security threats or vulnerabilities in the mobile applications, such as unauthorized access or data leaks. Therefore, one of the key advantages of application testing is to prevent any possible data breaches and security-centric issues.

• Confirm Proper Functioning

App testing permits checking mobile application functions and performance without any bugs, flaws, or glitches. For instance, QA specialists can find out whether consumers can successfully download the application to various devices.

• Lower mobile app development cost

You can easily detect errors or bugs in the application during its development course. This further confirms that they are fixed at an early phase and prevents the high expense of fixing flaws later.

Common Mobile App Testing Challenges

Here are the commonly faced challenges in mobile app testing:

• Device Fragmentation: Because of the proliferation of mobile gadgets, app testers face great challenges as the no. of active devices running an app increases annually. This presents a compatibility problem as testing teams should confirm apps can be employed across varied OSs (iOS, Android, Windows) and distinct versions of the same OS (such as iOS 6.X and 5.X).
• Multiple Devices Worldwide: Mobile application developers should confirm their app’s function on the most popular devices. This necessitates a broad infrastructure that comprises test solutions & a physical hub of devices. It can be a significant investment for startups but is essential for success.
• Multiple Screen Sizes & Resolutions: Around the globe, mobile phone manufacturers design products with distinct screen sizes. Diverse model variants have varied sizes and resolutions to appeal to an extensive range of users; therefore, applications require to be updated for each new screen specification launched. 
• High User Expectations: Mobile device global users have varied expectations of their devices. Manufacturers comply by giving a set of models to suit diverse niche audiences; with this diversity comes variations in the apps running on such devices & how they perform.
• Mobile Network Bandwidth: Mobile applications are bandwidth-intensive, and mobile networks often cannot handle the data volume that a high-speed application sends and receives. If any app doesn’t load at a pace, users will abandon it. Mobile app testing is essential to ensuring fast, reliable performance of both the backend systems and the mobile applications.
• Smooth User Experience: The success of any mobile app relies on a better user interface. A contextually specific and creative interface is more likely to be successful than a generic one. The more traits the app has, the more resources it will necessitate and the slower it may run.
• Security Concerns: Security concerns are a great obstacle for mobile application testers. Even though AI-powered test orchestration and test execution platforms such as LambdaTest help to relieve security concerns, there are still numerous concerns that developers should address to be truly satisfied with their test outcomes.

Best practices for Testing Mobile Applications

1. Know Your Target Audience

Before jumping into testing, it is crucial to know your niche audience. Varied user groups have distinct OSs, device preferences, and usage patterns. Customize your test strategy to prioritize the platforms and devices your audience is likely to use. This makes sure you focus your test efforts where they matter most.

2. Perform Frequent and Early Testing

It would be better to commence app testing as soon as development has attained a logical stage. You must track the outputs of each software testing life cycle, evaluating the test results of every cycle. This assists you in detecting glitches and flaws early before they turn into too expensive to fix.

3. Testing on Real-time Devices

While simulators and emulators have their place in testing, there is no substitute for testing on real-time devices. Emulators cannot mimic the exact behavior of a physical gadget, so it is essential to test on multiple real-time devices to catch problems that may not surface in virtual environments.

4. Mobile-First Testing Approach

Given the mobile-first testing approach, begin with mobile app testing before shifting to desktop or web versions. This guarantees that mobile users have the best possible experience.

5. Responsive Design Testing

Responsive design is crucial for applications that run on various screen sizes & orientations. Test how the application adjusts to varied screen sizes, from mobile phones to tablets, and guarantee that the functionality and layout remain reliable.

6. Network & Connectivity Testing

Mobile applications are mainly reliant on network connectivity. Testing your application under several network conditions, counting Wi-Fi, 3G, and 4G. Check that the application performs perfectly even with restricted bandwidth or intermittent connections.

7. Test Against Main Hardware Features

Mobile gadgets are loaded with robust sensors and hardware that adapt to users’ requirements and settings. For instance:

1. Gyroscope sensors
2. Proximity sensors
3. Location sensors
4. Ambient light sensors
5. Acceleration sensors
6. Touch-less sensors
7. Humidity pressure, & temperature sensors

Sensors within testing apps could be used to optimize the application’s performance. The QA team should understand the multiple sensors and how they can be utilized. QA testers should test against sensor-centric scenarios, like light conditions or varied settings.

8. Which one to opt for – Automated or Manual?

You will come across a no. of test automation tools to run mobile application testing, however, you must not underrate manual testing. Use automated test tools while testing a huge series of recurring data sets and while performing recurrent test cases.

9. Automated App Testing

Test automation is essential in mobile app development as it is lucrative, saves time, and reduces the threat of launching a faulty product. IDEs, Cloud automated test frameworks, and in-house scripts are all essential tools that can be used to generate test automation. But, the significant aspect is the management of the automated test suite.

10. Performance Testing

Performance glitches can frustrate consumers and result in bad reviews. Conduct performance testing to scrutinize for slow load times, memory leaks, and extreme battery consumption. Tools such as LambdaTest with Appium can help automate performance testing.

11. Security Testing

Mobile applications very often manage confidential user data. Security testing is crucial to determine vulnerabilities like data leaks, insecure Application Programming Interfaces, or insufficient encryption. Protect your users’ info and keep their trust.

12. Usability Testing

It is all about ensuring that the application is intuitive and user-friendly. Check how real-time users communicate with the mobile application, detect pain points, and iterate to enhance the user experience.

13. Regular Updates & Regression Testing

As devices, OSs, and 3rd-party libraries progress, your application should keep pace. Frequent updates must be accompanied by regression testing to guarantee that new modifications do not introduce new flaws or break current functionality.

14. Cross-Platform & Cross-Browser Testing

Besides testing on multiple devices, conduct cross-platform and cross-browser testing. Your application must perform unfailingly across varied browsers and OSs. 

To streamline the mobile app testing procedure and confirm comprehensive test coverage, consider incorporating LambdaTest into your test strategy. LambdaTest offers a huge selection of real-world browsers, devices, and OSs (operating systems), letting you conduct thorough tests without the requirement for an extensive device lab.

Wrapping up

Testing mobile applications is a complex process that requires careful consideration of the exceptional challenges presented by the mobile environment. By considering your target audience, testing on real devices, and following best practices for performance, responsiveness, usability, and security, you can make sure that your application stands out in the competitive app market.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• What are the important types of testing for mobile apps?

Important types of testing for mobile applications include performance testing, usability testing, functional testing, compatibility testing, security testing, and user interface (UI) testing.

• When should I begin testing your mobile app during the development procedure?

Testing must start early in the app development process, preferably during the development and design stages. Early testing addresses issues before they become too expensive to fix.

• How can I confirm my mobile app complies with App Store guidelines?

To confirm compliance, comprehensively review the guidelines of the corresponding app store and complete testing to meet their particular needs.