Do you know how many apps there are on an average smartphone? Take a wild guess!
Well, data shows that the average phone has about 80+ apps installed. That’s…a lot of apps. Don’t you think?
Well, why not? We have already discussed the importance of businesses and startups having their own custom-built apps. Did you have a look? If not, check it out here – Build Mobile Apps As a Brand Marketing Channel.
Now, if you want to create your own app, you’re going to want to make it stand out. It should look good and work seamlessly, no matter what device your customers are using.
So hop on.
In today’s article, we will tell you why you should use React Native to do just that—build your app, and totally knock it out of the park!
Let’s have a look at why this is important for your business and mobile app development process.
For quite some time now, React Native has been the popular kid on the mobile development block. And with good reason!
React Native allows app developers to create mobile applications for both Android and iOS platforms at the same time. How cool is that?
But before we dive deeper into the pros (and some cons), let’s do a background check!
See, React Native is basically a JavaScript-based framework for creating native mobile apps. Usually, you would have to code your mobile app twice—using Java (for Android) and Swift or Obj-C (for iOS).
But, here’s the good part, React Native eliminates this hassle.
React Native allows the native app threads to communicate with the target platform (whether iOS or Android) by building a native bridge between the two.
Kind of like this:
Source: Hackernoon
This will allow you to build fully functional apps for both Android and iOS platforms in a fraction of the time. And that too with only one coding language.
Sweet, isn’t it?
Tracing the origins of React Native (Hear this story!)
As they say, necessity is the mother of invention.
Similarly, React Native was developed because a group of app developers at Facebook became frustrated with having to code in multiple languages to create apps that basically did the same thing.
So, in 2013, developer Jordan Walke came up with the revolutionary discovery of using just one language—JavaScript—to build apps on both iOS and Android platforms.
And that’s how React Native was born.
Although it was initially designed only for iOS, Facebook swiftly added Android compatibility before releasing it to the general public in 2015. And the rest, as we know, is history.
Today, many well-known businesses use the React Native framework for their mobile applications.
I’m sure you are familiar with Skype, Facebook (of course), Tesla, Vogue, and Instagram—all of whom swear by this framework when it comes to mobile app development.
Now, it’s time to check out all the reasons why you should think about choosing React Native for your mobile app development plans!
Why use React Native for your mobile app development?
Coming down to the core topic now, follow up to add to your reasons for using React Native for mobile app development.
And, here starts the lore:
➨Supports the creation of cross-platform apps
All app developers will agree that it is quite difficult to manage apps on both Android and iOS platforms. This is because they are built-in separate languages and use distinct frameworks.
However, using just one platform to create the app will ensure that the app performs consistently across all platforms. Who wouldn’t want that?
Source: MindInventory
You just need one skilled React Native programmer who knows their stuff, and you are all set.
Perhaps the greatest benefit of using React Native for your mobile app development is that it supports the creation of cross-platform apps.
As a matter of fact, earning revenue is the most crucial part of starting a business from scratch. Now in order to stay afloat in today’s cut-throat market, you have to get fast returns for every penny you spend.
Makes perfect sense, don’t you agree with me on this?
Source: Peerbits
So why not save both time and money from the very beginning? Instead of hiring different app developers for iOS and Android, you can save some major bucks by getting a good React Native developer.
Before React Native, for one error in your published app, you would have to repeat the entire development process. After that, you had to re-upload the newer version of the app on the app store.
This would then go via Apple’s or Google’s approval procedure, after which customers would have to manually install the updated apps.
Ugh! I got tired while writing about this mundane process. Think about the developers who take charge.
But worry no more, because we have the perfect stack that uses Code Push. This amazing technology allows your app to be spontaneously updated and you don’t even have to go to the app store for that. What a win!
The program is automatically updated while it is running, and users can view the changes without having to restart the app.
Formidable, the app design company that built the Pharmacy section of Walmart’s app, declared that
“With React Native, Walmart can also now push updates to the Pharmacy app without the long review process that comes with traditional iOS development.This means things like templating, layout, and certain bugs can be addressed in real time, without having to wait for people to update their apps. ”
Now that’s what I’d call a win-win.
➨Simplifies the process of app development
Let’s face it:
Developing an app is a complex task. But this amazing tech stack simplifies the process to a great extent. You must be wondering how!
Well, this framework takes advantage of Facebook’s UI library to build code that is easy to comprehend and apply.
Different app development projects have different goals. But React Native manages to give a simple and uncomplicated answer to a range of these issues.
How does it do that, you ask?
Well, React Native has a pretty cool core feature: “Hot Reload”.
Hot reload in Flutter – Source: Medium
This feature allows app developers to see a running preview of the code. In addition to that, they can also check the actual impact, which occurs simultaneously while creating the app.
This further ensures that developers make the fewest errors possible and that the code is “bug-free.”
How cool is everything here!
➨Looks (and runs) like a native app
One of the best things about using this particular tech stack is that it offers users the feel of a native app. This is a great stand-out point when compared to the other cross-platform mobile development frameworks.
It further enables you, as an app developer, to leverage native mobile design components in your application. All this is done by integrating the basic components of the native UI with its own language— Javascript.
Consequently, the user experience considerably improves because the apps look and act like native programs.
Furthermore, since React Native employs the same basic components for iOS and Android, consumers can anticipate the same look and experience across all platforms. Love it, don’t you?
As we all know, this is the era of customizations and personalized products.
So why shouldn’t we have personalized apps too?
This amazing coding language gives the developers an opportunity to create unique styles for an app, from the server-side itself. Developers may design a tailored, made-to-fit experience for each user, all on the same app.
In fact, with React Native is so great that you may establish personalized styles per user group on the server-side. And on the user side, each customer will be able to see their own personalized UX.
Doesn’t that sound amazing?
➨Offers Third-party plugins
Developing an app from scratch, with a unique software base, may be costly and time-consuming. To solve this problem, you’ll need to repurpose some existing components.
Yes, you guessed it!
That is exactly where third-party plugins step in.
Source: Medium
By using Third-party plugins, you no longer need to use particular Web View functionalities. React Native can serve as a bridge between a plugin and a native module. What a savior!
Also, there are several choices for linking processes, which aid in quicker loading and cleaner performance, as well as improved memory management.
React Native has quite a large number of customizable libraries that are available on the internet, and this number keeps growing day by day.
➨Makes Debugging Easier
One of the greatest benefits of having a unified codebase for all platforms is that bug discovery becomes a lot easier. Let me walk you through this pointer.
Source: Github
Because React code is reusable, you simply have to make one update for both your Android and iOS platforms. A real-time-saver, if you ask me.
No developer will tell you that debugging is the most enjoyable job in the world. Trust me! You might have to devote hours poring over your code, or even other people’s codes, to find out the exact spot where there’s a trivial syntax error.
But wait! If you are using React Native, your team won’t have to waste so much time looking at two distinct codebases. Getting the point, aren’t you?
A single bug fix will resolve bugs across all operating systems at the same time. This will let you deliver a uniform performance throughout all the platforms.
In Conclusion
If you want to launch your app anytime soon, React Native is an excellent choice because of all the above-mentioned reasons. I am sure you agree with me since you are here till now.
It is a pretty well-liked framework that is popular with both app developers and businesses (I mean, obviously!)
Unsure where to look for app developers who are proficient in React Native?
Look no further! Reach out to our team of professionals at TheCodeWork to get all your doubts solved—in minutes! Not only will it save a lot of time, but also quite a bit of effort on your end.
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