As a startup in the field of developing mobile apps, you can choose between 3 options. Android, Apple or some universal coding which will work on both platforms. We all know that the best is to cover both platforms, but that is not such an easy task.
The universal coding tools such as Flutter, Xamarin or something else sounds like the perfect solution until you start working with it. Each of them has its pros and cons, but the bottom line is the following issues:
- Not 100% native UIX patterns. (Users will feel odd if they custom to the platform)
- Delay in support for the latest OS updates. (Means sometimes you will not be able to fix a bug for some period until support becomes available. Or you couldn't provide a solution in line with the latest trends)
- Not able to use all available libraries and tools for the platform. (Means you will need more time to develop expected solution)
- Compatibility with third-party libraries and Tools could be questionable. (Again more development and maintaining)
- Fewer developers available compare to the number of developers for native platforms
- Larger app size comparing to native solutions (Sometimes slower as well)
Only Android solution sounds better than Apple only because Android have more users, can be developed on any OS (Windows, Mac or Linux), more libraries and tools exist, more developers on the market, etc... However, there are a couple of issues which was show stoppers for us. It could be exhausting to develop and maintain apps for all those variations in OS, screen sizes, models, etc... Testing is very problematic because you can't cover all existing variation in OS, screen sizes, memory, processors, exist. Some new phones have too little memory or processing power, making your app seem bad. Additionally, android users are not quite willing to pay for apps. In the end, it would require more resources to develop a good Android app.
So we in Skillsom decide to start with Apple-exclusive apps, at least until we reach some level of profitability (we need more resources to support multiple platforms). Here is our list why we decide to start with Apple-exclusive apps:
- More than 80% of users are switched to the latest operating system,
- There are only a few screen sizes we need to support
- Shared code for iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macs (Provide more versatility with the same effort)
- All supported iPhones are quite powerful, much more than average Android.
- Fewer devices for testing and supporting
- Apple users usually have connected credit card with their Apple ID, so paying for apps happen more often than for Android apps.
- Only one Apple store, there is no diversity as in Android world. (Meaning we need to take care of only one store)