Phones have become so important to us that we cannot imagine a life without them. We have become very much dependent on this technological innovation, which supports so many applications. Developing mobile apps is a rather complicated process. A developer requires a lot of time and investment before they are ready to launch the app. Although advancements in technologies have made it possible to minimize the time taken for app development.
It is due to the faster development of apps that cross-platform apps are preferred over native ones. React native app development offers advancements in hybrid mobile app development. Many claims that it is the future of cross-platform app development.
What is React Native and why should you consider using it? Let’s find out.
What is React Native?
React Native is an app development framework that is used to develop apps for both Android and iOS simultaneously. It is based on JavaScript which is used for creating native mobile applications. Developers generally code the mobile app twice, once using Java for Android, and another time using Swift or Obj-C for iOS. React Native eliminates this hassle and saves a lot of time and effort.
The code is later bridged with JavaScript and React, which helps the apps work on both platforms with ease. Not only this, there is no difference in the functioning of React Native mobile apps and native apps. React Native apps provide a seamless user experience along with a smooth user interface (UI). This is why mobile app companies are more likely to outsource their work to a React Native app development company as it will enable them to cut down their costs and facilitate a faster launch.
Can you build mobile apps with React Native?
The answer is yes! Developers can build mobile apps that multitask using React Native framework. This can be used to develop applications based on Android, iOS, or the Web. It is the native feature of React Native framework that helps it stand out. This is widely used for creating hybrid (ones that work on iOS and Android) apps.
Is React Native popular for mobile app development?
Yes of course! Apps made using React Native have become popular in recent years. Some of the big ones like Instagram, Snapchat, and Netflix are built using React Native framework. Furthermore, leading companies like Walmart, Microsoft, Tesla, Shopify, Meta, Uber, etc have opted for using React Native for their tech stacks.
React Native seems to have a bright future. Apart from this, the framework has a vast community of developers and cross-platform support. This is expected to drive more users in the upcoming years. Most significantly, it is backed by leading tech giant Facebook.
Can you trust React Native with mobile app development?
React Native is designed to have the high-speed responsiveness and swiftness of web applications in hybrid app development. Apps developed with React Native provides a wonderful native experience with its efficient processing and smooth user experience.
Here are some reasons why you must hire a React Native app developer.
- Huge Community
React Native is an open-source framework for mobile app development that assures that all data related to this development is accessible to anyone and is free to anybody in the React Native network.
This technology is driven by a community. Developers can aslways check for advice or hints from community experts if any problem arises. Resources are available online.
Another advantage of working with an open platform is the ability for developers to exchange their experience and create portfolios that motivate other developers to write better code.
- Reusability of Code
This is perhaps the most important benefit of React Native. For businesses that plan to develop a mobile app, which can cut down costs and time, React Native is a great solution.
Developers can create a new app using a large part of the code that was used to create an existing app using React. The open-source library of pre-built modules in React-Native significantly speeds up the development of mobile applications.
- Simple UI
React Native uses the React JavaScript UI for designing the UI of apps. This results in a UI that is faster and more responsive. The loading time decreases dramatically along with an enhanced user experience.
The framework is perfect for creating simple apps with simple designs. The main feature that makes the UI smooth and responsive is its simplicity.
- Supports third-party plugins
Two types of plugins applicable in React Native are Native Modules and JavaScript Modules. React-Native enables the integration of such plugins into native applications or any third-party module as needed, such as integrating Google Maps or Google Calendar into an existing app functionality.
- Modular Architecture
React Native framework uses Native modules. This is a significant advantage and makes it worthy of developing mobile apps. You can limit the number of developers with React Native.
Modular architecture also assists the design team since developers can view each other’s projects if required. This uses Native API in its single codebase. This means that platform-specific experts for both Android and iOS are not needed.
- Live and Hot Reloading
Live reloading reads and compiles a document in which the developer has made modifications, and then sends a new file to the simulator, which reloads the app from the beginning.
Hot reloading, on the other hand, is based n Hot Module Replacement (HMR). It was implemented after the first reload option.
- Declarative coding style
Declarative programming means instructing the program on what needs to be done instead of how to do it. It is the opposite of imperative programming. The declarative coding method makes React-Native code incredibly concrete and simple to understand for developers.
Because of the great user interface, developers can simply look at the code and grasp the code flow.
- Ready-to-go solutions and libraries
React Native comes with a plethora of ready-made techniques and frameworks that make mobile development easy. The libraries make this one of the vast numbers of React Native libraries. We will list some of them below.
For example, Testing Libraries enable software engineers to create bug-free and seamless code by utilising the most popular and versatile research methodologies, such as Jest, Enzyme, Chai, and Mocha.
For type checking, tools like PropTypes and Flow are available, while ESLint is ideal for linting. A networking framework for React-Native projects is built using React-native-firebase, Axios, and Apollo Client.
Redux is a popular React Native state management library that is also compatible with several JavaScript libraries.
- Low-cost investment with less time for development
Mobile app development is perhaps a strategic move for businesses for survival. However, new entrepreneurs often fall short of funds. React Native offers cross-platform mobile app development for both Android and iOS.
Cross-platform apps are budget-friendly since enterprises need to employ one single technology creator for the role. It is also faster than creating separate apps for different platforms. Less development time ensures the overall development cost is kept low. Furthermore, faster mobile app development enables new businesses to launch the apps faster.
- Time to market
The app’s success is primarily reliant on time-to-market. It is the time it takes for a product to transition from the design phase to the product launch.
If you want to enter the smartphone app market early, a cross-platform environment is the best option. You can gain end consumers from both markets by building two platforms at the same time.
- Upgrade after launch
In the event of a different update strategy, once the first version of the mobile app is completed, native development is ideal for your company.
It will undoubtedly cost more because going native makes handling regular updates much easier, but if you do not anticipate post-launch changes, producing a native app is a less valuable investment.
- Instant live updates
Developers can enable instant updates of the app on the user’s device. They don’t need to do it via the monthly app update. This is possible because of the extensive use of JavaScript. The up-to-date version is a favourite among users too.
Furthermore, because the entire process is simplified and made simple, Microsoft’s CodePush SDK live update service is frequently used with the React-Native software to provide updates to the user.
- Faster Apps
React-Native facilitates app development through the use of JavaScript-based declarative programming paradigms. This results in cleaner, simpler, and more intelligible code.
The structure is based on a highly dynamic and fluid mobile user interface with asynchronous JavaScript interactions with the native environment. This lowers the app loading time as compared to typical native hybrid apps.
CONCLUSION
React Native is by far the most productive cross-platform framework. Applications built with this technology have a more natural appearance, making React Native superior to other similar platforms. It will be a cost-effective and long-term investment for startups and businesses.
It is also easy to learn and offers commendable outcomes. On top of this, React Native delivers an interface similar to native apps. This is why you must hire dedicated react native developer and start building your app.
