Testing your application - 9 useful tips for the developer

Now in the catalogs of applications Apple App Store and Google Play in the aggregate placed about 3 million mobile programs. The number of applications is growing steadily, which cannot be said about the quality of the overwhelming number of already placed programs. One of the reasons for this situation is that developers do not test applications well enough, this is largely due to the lack of proper experience.

A professional tester could, of course, help bring the mobile application to near perfect condition. But most developers usually do not have the funds to pay for such a professional. And users do not want to put up with poor quality. And if the user detects a serious problem (excessive energy consumption, crash of the application, phone hangup), then 44% of users, according to statistics, immediately delete the application without understanding the problem. 96% of these users write a bad review about the program. In fact, there are quite a few reasons why an application is deleted, we already wrote about it in our blog . Now let's talk about what can be done to make the application work as it should, pleasing the user with stability, and the developer with advertising revenue.

1. We test target OS and OS versions

It may look like captaincy, but you really need to test the target OS. Some developers use emulators to save time. This is not bad, but emulators often lack many functions and features inherent in a real operating system. And the function that is absent in the emulator can cause crash of the program or any problem in the operation of the application.
Agree, before the release of the application, it is extremely important to test its operation in real OS conditions, and you need to test the program on different versions of this OS. It is not necessary to check all versions, it is enough to take the most common and popular ones. If your program should work under iOS 8, then try version 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, etc. on real gland.
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2. The program interface on the screens of various sizes

So tested BBC Sport

With iOS, this problem is not so relevant, but for Android the question of the application on devices with different display sizes is one of the most important. The program should look good and work stably on devices with any screen size (if, of course, such a goal is set by the developer). And here the advice will be the same as in the previous paragraph - test the application on real devices, and try to find the maximum number of gadgets with screens of all sizes.

If related devices have the same display size, then there is no need to work with two devices at once. It will be enough to test the application on one of the gadgets. For example, if your program supports iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s, you can test the application only on one of the smartphones.

3. We check the operation of the application with different speeds of connection to the web

Network connection is not used by all applications. If you are developing a standalone calculator, you can skip this item. But if your program requires a connection to the Network (even once), you need to attend to testing the application in terms of connecting to the Network at different speeds. In some cases, the application may work fine with a wide communication channel, and fail if the Internet connection is slow.
By the way, if your program requires a quick connection, and works well only if there is a normal WiFi connection, you should warn the user about this. Otherwise, a person who downloaded the application and did not get the result expected from the program due to a slow network connection may simply delete the app without understanding the reasons for the glitch.

4. And now - without the Net at all

Yes, it happens often - there is no signal of a cellular network, or an available access point. Are you sure that the program will work normally in such conditions? Sometimes an application may behave unexpectedly if there is no connection. Or imagine another situation - the connection was, the user performs the action, and at that moment the connection disappears.

The application should not "fall" or zaglyuchit at this moment, otherwise it can make a very negative impression on the user. It is also necessary to provide for displaying a notification of the absence of the network so that the user understands the cause of the problem.

We give a simple example. The person downloaded the program that requires registration. The registration form opens, the user fills it in, and here, when you click on the “Finish” button, the connection disappears. In this case, if the program did not have time to perform the desired action, a message should appear indicating that there is no connection. Otherwise, unsuccessfully poking into the “Finish” button, the user may become so upset that he simply removes the program.

5. Energy consumption

Another problem, and it occurs very often. It so happens that you install the same calculator, and after an hour and a half of the battery charge - as it did not happen. Naturally, such a voracious application is immediately sent to the scrap by the majority of users of mobile devices.

Why all? Because the developer did not test the power consumption of his program. According to statistics, 55% of users are faced with the problem of "hungry applications." To prevent the emergence of such a problem, you should use the built-in tools of iOS 8. For Android, there is a great application - Battery Stats Plus.

If the application works perfectly, do not forget to check it for "gluttony".

6. Check how the program affects other phone features.

Do not forget that a telephone, even a modern one, is a telephone, and its communication functions are necessary for the user. Make sure that the installed program does not interfere with the use of these functions of the device. Check if the phone can receive a call, show system notifications, or if your program does not adversely affect the operation of other programs.

7. We test advertising of various formats.

If your application provides advertising, then you need to thoroughly test the work of the program with advertising in various formats. Here we are talking about the size of the advertising insert (if we are talking about banners) and checking the work of media and contextual advertising.
If the banner will overlap the program management buttons, the user is likely to simply remove such an application. In the case of display advertising, performance problems are possible - so here it is worth fulfilling the recommendation “measure seven times - one cut”.

By the way, if you have a ready-made application - try the programmatic mediation from Appodeal. At Appodeal, we test your applications and help you customize the display of ads.

8. We follow the guidelines of the creators of the platform.

Each of the mobile platforms, be it Android, iOS or Windows Phone, has its own requirements for applications offered by developers. These requirements apply to both the interface and functionality. If these requirements are not met, we can expect problems when working with a program created “not according to the rules”. For example, if you created an Android application with a built-in return button, this function may conflict with a similar function of the OS itself. But in iOS such a button is necessary, since the platform does not have a corresponding built-in tool.

9. Regional features

If your application works with different languages, that is, localization is provided, you should check the operation of the program especially carefully. After all, localization is more than just a translation into another language. An example is the date and time format. In the US, this is “mm / dd / yyyy,” but in most other regions it is “dd / mm / yyyy.” And such “little things” come across quite often.

Be sure to check the localization features and the work of the program in all regional segments that are provided.

And remember - the first impression is everything. Most of the users, having opened the application and having received a negative impression while working with it, are unlikely to appreciate the merits of the program. On the contrary, 44% of users, as mentioned above, immediately remove such an application.



So do not regret the time and effort to test your program - all this will be rewarded a hundredfold, if the application will work perfectly, pleasing users.