5 Common Mistakes That Every Android Developer Should Avoid
Mobile app development is a fast-growing industry with Android apps taking the lead with over 75% of share in the market. There are over 1 million Android apps in the Play Store but only a few of them make a splash. It may be due to the functionality, the usability and the likeable quotient for the users in the app. But one of the major reasons why your Android app isn’t able to deliver properly to its users is due to the small technical problems that you have missed out during the development stages which are obstructing the app from landing more loyal users.
Most of these mistakes made by Android developers can be avoided when a little bit more focus is given in the app development. These mistakes which when avoided could make a whole world of difference to the number of downloads your app gets, the number of users using your apps for a long time and a great reduction in the rate of uninstallation. Given below are some of the most important mistakes that every Android app developer should be cautious enough to avoid to get the maximum reach for their Android apps.
- Developing An iOS Clone
It is a common practice to have the same application for both Android and iOS devices. But this doesn’t necessarily mean to clone an iOS app from the Android application. There is a number of things that could go wrong this way, most of which boils down to spoiling the user experience.
For example, when cloning an iOS app which has a static menu, then the same functionality with an iOS mobile becomes difficult for the users to operate. Similarly, using a coloured system notification icon for an iOS app is also not advisable.
There are many numbers of problems in the usability when you clone an iOS application which could totally disturb the way a user interacts with the application. The design standards for an Android and an iOS application are entirely different and it is best to develop the functionality and usability of the applications based on them.
- Developing The App with Reference to A Single Android Device
You may be having your own mobile phone as a reference when developing an Android app but have in mind that a lot of users with varying models and screen sizes will be using the same application. If you are developing the app based on the particular device, there are a thousand things that could go wrong for users with different devices. To start with, your device pixel may vary from the device the users have, the orientations across the different sizes may differ and many other similar discrepancies in the interface may crop up.
Therefore, the app you develop has to seamlessly work across a number of devices without any disturbances in its functionality. The features of the app should be responsive and the UI/UX should look the same way across all applications.
You can do so by following the Android Application Development Framework which will guide you to make your code operate in a similar way across all models of Android devices and across varying screen sizes.
- Developing An App Devoid of Fragments
A fragment represents a piece of activity of the user which helps to combine, reuse and position it based on the activity. If you are launching new app screens for every single activity, then your app will consume more space and end up with an inefficient performance.
By making use of fragments and combining the design tools available, you can make your app more efficient and user-friendly as possible.
- Failure to Use Background Threads
A fresh process runs in the background of the device when an app is launched each time. This fresh process runs one main thread which is also where all other applications run. When you are using this main thread for connecting the network with the app, storing and retrieving data, image processing and so on, you are blocking the main thread which could lead to a lag in the app functions. Even if the main thread is blocked for even a few seconds, it could cause disarray in the running of the application and make the total experience a rough one.
It is always best to run background threads without affecting the main threads for network access, SD reading and writing, database querying, image processing, bitmap loading, etc to ensure that the application runs as smooth as possible.
- Not Putting The Intents to Good Use
Intents are used to communicate in an Android application or between applications in the same device. This enables to transfer data between the applications and it is always best to use intents unless otherwise you particularly need a customized implementation. Sharing content like images, videos, music, files, etc can be implemented through intents.
Mobile apps developer and technical writer at Nex Mobility India for more than 7 years. I have a professional development team for Xamarin, Android and iOS apps. We are also providing best outsourcing services and give end to end solution of apps programming.
