Developing Mobile Apps - Some Mistakes To Avoid

Mobile apps or application development is the mechanism that is followed to develop application software for various handheld devices like personal as well as enterprise digital assistance devices or mobile phones.

After the induction of iPhones and Smart Phones, tablets and other high tech hand held devices, people are slowly shifting their focus from the conventional ‘bigger’ devices like laptops and desktops to the relatively smaller handheld devices. This understandably has increased the popularity as well as the need of mobile app development by many folds. The process, however, is not that easy. Developers often end up committing several mistakes. These mistakes at times play the role of deterrent in providing enough mobility to an application, which in turn results in marketing disaster.

Improper Planning

This is one of the major loopholes or fallacies that often plague the practice of mobile app development. Without a proper planning nothing works and application development is no different. If and when an app is designed without any substantial planning of the end result, it is likely that the end product will be a worthless one and will hardly be able to serve the very purpose that it is intended for. Hence, before you actually start the development, it is imperative that you plan the entire ‘thing’ in a transparent way so that you do not lose the way midway. Moreover, the product should be such that it will show the users the right way and will fulfill the purpose properly.

Ignoring the apparently trivial thing(s)
Ignoring things that are apparently trivial is another mistake that developers tend to end up committing. Things like login details, interference of graphic as well as animations with the basic website usability are often ignored at the first instance. These apparently trivial issues subsequently snowball into disasters, thereby hindering the very functionality of the apps to a considerable extent. Hence, each and every aspect of the app should be taken into account seriously in order to ensure a flawless development along with ultimate execution. The very purpose of the development should be to ensure that the app that is developed is user-friendly, appealing, as well as adored by the users of every age group and that also for a substantial amount of time.

Refrain from creating a scrolling design
Too much of scrolling will surely deter the users. They do not like scrolling too much nowadays. Hence, you need to make sure than the app does not have much of scrolling designs. The idea behind designing the app should be such that the user is never forced to do anything. They should be able to see things without much of an effort, seamlessly.

Ignoring the Sharing Option
People generally tend to share apps they are using with their friends, colleagues, family members along with other individuals they know. Hence, the apps developers will have to have a substantial amount of sharing option so that things can be shared with others easily. Then again, the option needs to be absolutely user friendly.

Building apps for multiple platforms separately
This is another very common mistake that the developers commit. They tend to build one platform first and then follow it up with other platforms. This doubles the engineering costs and the time taken. Hence, it is better to finalize an application on Android and then have a few iterations and then port to iOS or the other way round. This will also get the MVP or Minimum Viable Product out to the stands at the earliest, besides cutting the costs to almost half.

Not taking the issue of Monetization into account
If someone assumes that as soon as a site is developed clients will just come and start paying, that is a great mistake. There are a lot of apps that can be downloaded free of cost. Hence, one should think how to monetize the app right from the scratch. Some of the common myths regarding monetization that need to be avoided include:

1. Advertisements will support the app
2. A company will acquire the app as soon as it is developed
3. Users will start paying for the app
4. First of all scalability needs to be emphasized – monetization can be taken into account much later

There are a number of other mistakes that app developers can commit. However, there needs to be a specific planning in order to avoid these blunders.

You can hire developer from top app development India companies who can guide you in detail about the benefits of both approaches.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to hire mobile app developers from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Cross-platform Mobile App Development – Selecting the Perfect Platform

An organization can always enhance the popularity of a mobile app by targeting multiple operating systems at a time. The rapidly growing popularity of mobile platforms further encourages many enterprises to invest in cross-platform mobile application development. A developer can simply write the code once, and deploy the same to multiple mobile platforms. Most organizations build cross-platform mobile apps by targeting hugely popular operating systems like iOS, Android and Windows. But the developers often have to address the challenges related to hardware capabilities and software stack of individual mobile operating systems. The challenges can be easily addresses by picking the perfect cross-platform mobile application development platform. However, an organization has to consider several factors to choose the best platform.

How to Pick the Perfect Cross-Platform Mobile App Development Platform?

Define the User Experience

Each mobile app must target the right audience to become popular within a shorter span of time. So your choice of mobile app development platform will be impacted by the audience you want to target. Once you identify want your potential customers expect, it will be easier for you to choose the right tools and framework to achieve higher engagement rate by targeting multiple mobile operating systems. After defining the user experience, you can choose the right framework that optimizes the look, feel and performance of the application on each mobile platform.

Familiarity of the Platform

Most cross-platform application development platforms are built for scripting languages. So the developers familiar with HTML, JavaScript and CSS can easily user these frameworks. You can help your team in migrating from website and internet application development to mobile application development by choosing a platform that is more familiar to them.

Look for Powerful Plug-ins

Widely used cross-platform mobile development frameworks like Appcelerator's Titanium and Adobe's PhoneGap come with easy to use plug-ins. These plug-ins allow developers to use a variety of services or tools, along with accessing common links to similar APIs. The programmers can further use the plug-ins to communicate with the mobile device’s cameras, location sensors or accelerometers without writing lengthy lines of the code. So you must opt for a platform that provides customized plug-ins to developers.

Explore Future Prospects

A number of recent reports have highlighted the constantly growing number of dead apps in various app stores. So you must use the latest and futuristic technologies to extend the lifespan of the mobile application. It is always important to choose a platform that supports the latest technological advances in the industry. At the same time, the platform must enable developers to use futuristic technologies like HTML5 and XML. The feature will make it easier for them to include new features and functionalities without writing lengthy lines of code.

Option to Adopt Enterprise Cloud Services

Within a shorter span of time, Cloud services have become hugely popular among both individual and enterprise users. Often developers have to write lengthy and complex code to integrate the enterprise and Cloud services. But some innovative cross-platform mobile app development platforms make it easier for programmers to integrate Cloud services in a quick and hassle-free way. For instance, they can simply code an Exchange integration once to make the mobile app work on multiple mobile operating systems without requiring any additional security methods.

Evaluate the Pros and Cons of Each Platform

The cross-platform mobile application development frameworks help organization in enhancing deployment speed, while reducing the development cost. Further, an organizer has option to choose from several open source and commercial development tools and frameworks. Often these frameworks required developers to use prescribed tools and suites, which can make the coding and rendition slower. There are also chances that the developers have to learn new tools to build the mobile app. So you must not forget to evaluate the pros and cons of each platform according to the type of cross-platform mobile app you want to build.

Google, Microsoft and Apple frequently update their mobile operating systems by including innovative features and functionalities. So each organization must use the most recent version of the cross-platform mobile app development platform to deliver richer user experience.

You can hire developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you accomplish your project within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide cross-platform mobile app development services. If you would like to hire Phonegap app developers from us, we would be glad to assist you at Mindfire Solutions.

Why Mobile Apps are significant for sustaining Business Growth and Development?

Most start-ups aren’t too bothered about having an app to boost their ventures, either online or otherwise. This is why most don’t understand the market or its needs, and vanish without a trace. Whether it is the case of start-ups or long established businesses, apps offer a great way to boost the business. Let us now understand why mobile applications are significant for business growth and development.

The trend

In this day and age, with the shrinkage of almost everything to accommodate success, chip designs of the tiniest denominations and with processors that work at lightning speeds are being introduced into the world of smartphones. The chips are fast, sleek as well as crystal clear with their aims or ambitions, which means as a user, one gets speedier processes along with fast memory.

It all depends on the kind of OS a smartphone would use, which would then decide on how much power the hardware would end up giving. Most esteemed tablets as well as smart handheld devices run on iOS, Windows or Android, and ever since 2010 when the word “Mobile App” was termed, the trend has only been growing, helping the business community to a large extent. There was a lot of skepticism in the first place, but isn’t that what every success story has always faced?

What are mobile apps?
Mobile applications in layman terms are programs that run on platforms such as iOS, Windows as well as Android. They have various aims and objectives to help the millions who download and use them. For example, they offer the following features:

1. Social networking
2. News
3. Entertainment
4. Business
5. Communication
6. Messaging
7. Sharing and file transfer
8. Education
9. Health
10. Lifestyle and more

The app market has outstanding applications, some of which are absolutely free for business owners to download or use. One can find them on ITunes, Google Play or even the esteemed Windows Phone App Store too. Sources say, there are more who deal with daily businesses using applications, than those who use the internet. The applications have taken over in such a tremendous force, which has only made app manufacturers realize they’d better provide the best business apps or perish while someone else takes over.

In the business world
Customization of apps for companies big or small is the latest trend to follow. Apps are customized for the following domains;

1. Industries
2. Shopping portals
3. Banking as well as investment
4. Retail
5. Health care, etc.

Business owners have realized the importance of business apps, and know that around seventy five percent of the clients or customers, look for products or services using their smart hand held devices these days. This is because apps have a broader reach, making it easier for clients from any part of the globe to access what the business has to offer. Large business sharks too have apps that decide their point of sales, help with communication as well as conducting ecommerce.

Keeping all of this in mind and looking at the demands thereby, companies are now investing in business apps like never before. While the sun shines everyone wants to make hay. That’s why they are outsourcing their needs to developing nations for apps manufacturing, and they know that the returns on such an investment would make them go laughing to the banks in times to come.

More reasons
Apps help connect with the client or customer on a one on one basis. Most high profiled CEOs across the world, communicate with the masses on a daily basis using business apps. This strengthens the bond while enhancing the relationship further between the two, say experts.

For an organization to be successful, it has to put the client or customer first. This means all hurdles faced by the potential buyer needs to be shunned as well as cleared, and for that, constant communication is a must. Thanks to the advancement of technology, all of this is possible. Staying trendy with the growing demands of the market is also a manageable task. In other words business apps keep the company shining, helping it continuously to boost its bottomline.

Customers are demanding, and your venture should not suffer by not being able to provide what they want. So its good to go for mobile application that give a real thrust to your business.

You can hire developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our expert mobile app developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Mobile website vs Mobile App: Which should you use?

The rapidly growing popularity of smartphones and tablets has compelled enterprise to promote their businesses by targeting mobile platforms. Each organization has several options to target the mobile device users. Some companies launch mobile business apps to attract their existing customers and prospects. At the same time, many organizations optimize the look and feel of their websites for mobile web browsers. However, both mobile website and mobile apps have their own pros and cons. So each enterprise must compare and evaluate these two options to target more relevant users.

Evaluating Pros and Cons of Mobile Apps and Mobile Websites

User Access

A business mobile app needs to be downloaded by the users. Once the user downloads and install the application on his mobile device, he can avail its features simply with a single click. On the other hand, a mobile website can be accessed by users immediately on their mobile web browsers. Further, the mobile version of your business website can also be accessed by using mobile version of various online search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Functionality
The mobile applications are more effective in keeping users engaged by offering efficient and high quality functionality. Your business can always impress users by allowing them to perform complex tasks like getting information about products, placing order and tracking payment without any hassle. But the mobile website does not allow users to carry out any such transactions directly. But you can use the mobile website as a medium to get more inquiries and website visits.

Speed
A number of reports have highlighted how a mobile app runs at a much faster pace than the mobile websites. So the mobile applications will help you in keeping users engaged by delivering rich user experience. The mobile websites also require users to be connected to the internet to access the mobile websites. But many mobile applications can be accessed by users without having any internet connection.

Technological Requirements
Most organizations, nowadays, launch different versions of the same enterprise app by targeting different mobile platforms. So each version of the app must be developed using technologies and programming language according to the requirements of the mobile operating system. So businesses have to hire mobile app developers to implement their ideas. On the other hand, the mobile version of your website can be developed without putting any extra time and effort. Your website designer can use some simple tricks to create and optimize the mobile website.

Development Cost
As your existing website can be easily optimized for the mobile web browsers, you are not required to incur any heavy expenses. But cost of the mobile application development project will vary according to the features and functionalities of the app. Further, you have to promote the app on various platforms to enhance its popularity. So the overall cost of developing, launching and marketing a mobile application may be huge. It is always a good idea to keep in mind your budget, while evaluating these two options.

ROI
An organization has option to launch the free as well as paid version of the app. When a user loves the features and functionality offered by the free version of the application, he will not hesitate to download the paid version. Further, an organization can implement a comprehensive promotional strategy to make its paid apps popular. The free apps can also be used as a medium to generate revenue by including in-app purchases and in-app advertisement. So it is always easier to monetize a mobile application in comparison to a mobile website.

Each organization also needs to make and implement a comprehensive strategy to launch a popular business mobile application. But it can optimize the mobile version of the website without putting any extra time and effort. So an enterprise must evaluate cost and ROI benefits before taking a decision in favor of any one. You can hire mobile application programmer from top mobile app development companies who can guide you in detail about the benefits of both approaches.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to discuss with an expert mobile app developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Does Your Business need a Mobile App?

A number of recent reports have highlighted how mobile apps will reshape the future of businesses in the upcoming years. The steady increase in the sale of smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices also indicate the necessity of mobile applications for enterprises. However, a business has to consider many factors before developing a mobile application. Also, it has option to consider several alternatives including mobile websites. Therefore, it has become essential for each enterprise to decide if it is time to invest in mobile app development.

5 Reasons Why Each Business Requires a Mobile App

1) Reach and Engage Most Relevant Customers

You may be finding it a daunting challenge to promote your products or services by targeting the most relevant audience. The mobile apps make it easier for you to reach the most relevant customer in real time. At the same time, the application will also enable you to keep the customers engaged by accessing their location and detailed profile information. Along with promoting your business, you can further encourage the app users to purchase your products by offering coupons, interactive deals and similar incentives. With most users downloading business applications, it becomes easier for you to attract and engage the most relevant customers and prospects.

2) Serve Mobile Ads
Many reports have highlighted how mobile ads are more effective that other conventional and digital advertising techniques. Often businesses have to incur additional expenses to server mobile ads through publishers and marketing companies. The enterprise mobile app will make it easier for you to serve mobile ads by targeting the most relevant users, while avoiding additional expenses. Along with giving coupons and discounts, you can also easily send location-based push notifications. The innovative advertising methods will further keep your customers interested and engaged.

3) Add Value to Your Customer Service
Often the quality of customer service and support helps a business to retain customers. The business mobile app will make it easier for you to deliver prompt customer service, while adding value to your existing customer care services. Many customers, nowadays, gather information about a product or service directly using their smartphones and tablets. Similarly, many people even buy goods using their mobile devices to save both time and effort. So you can always build a base of happy customers by providing smart and quick customer service through the application.

4) Allow Customers to Shop on the Go
Each customer wants to buy the best product at his own pace and convenience. Along with gather information about a specific product or service, many people, nowadays, prefer shopping through mobile apps. So you can always use your enterprise application as a mobile store that enables users to browse through the products and shop on the go. Many reports have highlighted the growing popularity of mobile shopping options among customers residing in different regions. So you can beat competition through the application by providing smart and flexible shopping options to customers.

5) Avoid Losing Customers
Despite the growing popularity of digital and mobile shopping, many people still prefer shopping at local stores. As the customers will not gather address and contact numbers by visiting your business website, it is important to allow them to access the information in an instant. The application enables you to let customers access your contact information without initiating a web search. Further, the app can use the GPS tracking feature of their mobile devices, and enable customers to find your business without any hassle. The combination of mobile advertisement and option to target all types of customers will help you in building a base of regular customers.

Each business can further choose from a number of mobile application development options. In addition to developing the enterprise app by deploying its in-house team of developers, it can also consider hiring a freelance mobile app developer or outsourcing the project. Many enterprises prefer outsourcing the project to a reliable company to develop, launch and promote their mobile applications without investing any extra time and effort.

You can hire certified mobile app developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to know more about the expertise of our expert mobile app developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

What impacts Mobile App download numbers?

According to a statement released by research firm Gartner recently, “Mobile app stores will see annual downloads reach 102 billion in 2013, up from 64 billion in 2012. Total revenue in 2013 will reach USD 26 billion, up from USD 18 billion in 2012.” The statement also predicted a steady growth in the upcoming years, while adding that free mobile apps constituted for 91% of the total application downloads this year. These constantly increasing number of downloads further encourage many enterprises to invest in mobile application development.

But with more and more companies venturing into mobile app business, the field has become highly competitive. Each enterprise, nowadays, has to implement a comprehensive mobile application development and promotion strategy to make its apps popular within a very short span of time. At the same time, the strategy also needs to identify the key technologies and market forces that affect the number of mobile app downloads.

Important Factors Affecting Mobile App Download

Performance and Speed of the App
Many reports have highlighted how the mobile app loading time can have a huge impact on the user experience as well as number of downloads. Often users avoid applications that take more time to load, or require them to take a higher number of actions. So the performance, efficiency and speed of the mobile application must be optimized, while making it more focuses to keep the users impressed and engaged.

Options to Get User Feedback
People love to use mobile apps that are more interactive. Most users also appreciate the feedback mechanism provided by applications. At the same time, many mobile users also look for constant consumer-centric improvements in the app. The right feedback mechanism will help you in gathering the user feedback and comments, and implement these suggestions to deliver improved user experience. Further, you must convey information about the updated version of the mobile application to users, and encourage them to download it to avail a set of fresh and innovative features.

Make the App Easy-to-Customize
Each user wants to customize the mobile application according to his personal preference. So you can easily make the application popular by incorporating features that enables users to personalize it by adjusting settings. It is also a good idea to allow users to change the color, font size, font type and privacy settings to add more value to the app, while delivering more personalized user experience.

Use Dedicated App Marketing Channels
Most mobile application stores allow application developers and resellers to promote their apps by availing customized advertisement options. However, you have to choose the marketing channel according to your mobile application. For instance, the iOS apps can be promoted through Apple’s iAD, whereas the Android apps will be promoted through Google’s AdMob. As these dedicated mobile application marketing channels are effective in reaching out to a large base of mobile users, you can use these advertisement options to get more mobile app downloads immediately after its launch.

Make the Application More Searchable
Many users gather information about mobile apps using online search engines. So the landing page of the application must be optimized to appear at the top of major search engine results pages. Similarly, the title, descriptions and feature list of the application also need to be optimized by using the most relevant keyword and phrases. You can always make your app more searchable to increase the number of downloads without relying on the app stores.

Create App Profiles
You can always optimize the exposure of a specific mobile application by creating profiles on directories, review sites and similar online platforms. It is also a good idea to submit the app to popular app reviewers, and request them to post app reviews. The app reviews will further help you in determining the flaws that affect user experience negatively. You can even use the data to increase app downloads by launching its updated version.

Track the App Constantly
The app promotion strategy must be modified and updated regularly to optimize the campaign. You must keep track of the app consistently using a set of tools and services. The constant tracking will make it easier for you to gather key information about the app including the audience, their age group and usage pattern. You can even consider using mobile app analytics to gather detailed information about the performance of your mobile app, along with identifying its flaws and weaknesses.

The number of mobile app downloads is also impacted by the current and upcoming trends in technology and user demand. At the same time, an enterprise also needs to update its app at regular intervals to increase the number of downloads.

You can hire mobile app programmers from top app development firms who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to discuss with an expert mobile app developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

How Publishers Hope to Close the Mobile Revenue Gap

A number of recent reports have highlighted that websites, nowadays, get over 50% of their visitors through mobile platforms. With more and more users accessing internet on their handheld devices, it has become essential for enterprise to explore innovative ways to serve ads on mobile. However, many reports have also highlighted that mobile ad rates are still negligible in comparison to conventional rates of advertisement. Therefore, each publisher will find it a daunting challenge to close the mobile revenue gap. At the same time, each enterprise must make and implement a comprehensive mobile advertisement strategy by considering some important factors.

5 Effective Ways to Close the Mobile Revenue Gap

1) Target Multiple Mobile Platforms
Despite the rapidly growing popularity of Android, iOS still generates the maximum ad revenue. So the publisher needs to target the right mobile operating system. In addition to the popularity and market share of the mobile operating system, it is also important to consider its potential to generate ad revenue. An enterprise can further consider serving ads on multiple handheld devices and platforms to generate more revenue. However, no publisher can ignore some of the existing mobile platforms, because Symbian is still effective in generating adequate ad revenue despite being ditched by Nokia in favor of Windows Phones.

2) Personalize Display Ad Units
Similar to mobile platforms, revenue gap also exists between smartphones and tablets. So each publisher can close the mobile ad revenue by creating multiple display ad units according to user-consumption patterns. At the same time, publishers need to extend native platforms for individual handheld devices to easily serve smaller banner ads. Similarly, the animations and videos can be customized for individual mobile platforms to attract and engage the users.

3) Build Innovative Mobile Ad products
The quality and effectiveness of the mobile ad product will have a direct impact on the revenue. So the publishers can avail several benefits by building innovative mobile ad products. In addition to using the products as a medium to impress enterprises, the ad products can further focus on the needs of individual advertiser. The innovative mobile ad products will further encourage advertisers to allocate more funds to serve mobile ads.

4) Target a Higher Level of Customer Intimacy
Each enterprise wants to serve mobile ads by targeting the most relevant users. In addition to customizing the mobile ad products, it is also important for publishers to convince businesses about the effectiveness of mobile advertisement. Therefore, the publishers must explore innovative intelligent marketing techniques that enable them to serve customize mobile ads by targeting the most relevant users. However, no publisher can develop a high level of customer intimacy without putting some amount of time and effort. A publisher also needs to implement a strategy to gather information about the customers and advertisers from several reliable sources.

Despite the rapidly growing popularity of handheld devices, many organizations still allocate a large part of their advertisement budget for conventional print programs. Further, many organizations allocate funds for mobile advertisement from their overall digital marketing budgets. So the publishers must convince more and more organizations to allocate more funds for serving mobile ads. It is also important to run campaigns to make entrepreneurs realize the distinct advantages of mobile advertisement. With companies investing more funds in mobile advertisement campaigns, it will be easier for publishers to close the mobile ad revenue.

Each new mobile device comes with a set of additional and extended features. Also, handheld device manufacturers frequently integrate new technologies to deliver rich user experience. So the publishers must monitor the frequent changes in technology and user demand to close the mobile revenue gap in the long run.

You can hire developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to discuss with an expert mobile app developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

14 Must-See Mobile App Designs For Inspiration

Mobile apps along with responsive websites are constantly developing, functioning and looking better than ever, as expert designers come to the various advanced terms having the parameters involved. With the smarter look, even the smaller screens do not necessarily give poorer experiences. The good sign so far as apps designing is concerned is the restrictions of cellular devices as these help in focusing the minds of professional designers.

Latest Mobile App Development Trends

It seems to the users that the very best design really stands out, and does a great job in terms of understanding user behavior on the smaller devices. There are a number of instances that go certain way towards proving that mobile websites and apps can really communicate functionality clearly. Nowadays, application designers and developers have become more prominent in the field of extensible web. The markets are found to be flooded with Android as well as iOS apps which also earned considerable profits for several small development studios. In today's time, as the smartphone era is taken off with an immense buzz, app developers and designers are in high demand.

Here are a great collection of 15 mobile app UI designs for Inspiration. Some of these are especially designed for iOS, which is considered as the powerhouse of the modern smartphone market.

1. Behance: The Behance is a creative portfolio android app and it is now available for beta testing. It offers easy content accessibility with huge project previews.

2. Dribbble: Now browsing has become easier with this android application. It is easy to explore and search in your mobile device.

3. Location Finder: It enables users to browse their phonebook contacts saved by their locations. It also helps in knowing location of outgoing or Incoming calls or any mobile number (at City level/State/Country). It also displays the time of the last interaction with that phone number.

4. Task Manager: This Android application keeps users focused, organized and more productive. task Such application helps you schedule the tasks in proper way while improving the performance of your cell phone.

5. Task Tracking: Task Tracker is an open source and free to use project management application which minimizes overhead to maximize productivity as well as accountability.

6. Slide Concept: Mobile Slides concept is a complete solution to the presentation needs. It supports retina display in new iPad.

7. Fashion App: This App offers a lot of innovative ideas or best combinations for the latest styles.

8. Music App: With such apps it is easy to play, share and discover your favorite music on Android and the web.

9. Room App: It offers free drawing or predefined shapes of a room shape with touch or S-Pen.

10. Portfolio App: With the help of this application you can show, add or organize your photographic art work quickly and with ease.

11. Fantasy Leagues App: This application provides users with all the things they need to manage or help their fantasy football team via mobile site related to official Fantasy Premier League. Various other things required for making all crucial tactical decisions are also offered by this app.

12. Live Messages App: With these apps you can have live experience anywhere by tracking or comparing your achievements, connecting with your live friends. You can also review various latest games.

13. Weather App: Android weather apps offer the accurate and quick weather forecast. It searches your address to locate cities and provide the current weather condition, current temperature, wind speed, direction as well as humidity along with ten, five days or hourly weather forecast.

14. Alarm Clock App: The digital alarm clock as well as timer apps are meant to solve all your timing needs.

All these apps testify to the mobile design platform that indeed offers some advanced features for inspiration. Presumably, all these apps as well as design features would definitely work wonders, provided the user experience mirrors designing. Check out new mobile applications, especially iPhone designs that inspire app industry to go for flat design. With enhanced market accessibility, you can simply get and enjoy any of the really beautiful models of flat mobile app designs.

You can hire programmers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide iPhone app development services. If you would like to speak to one of our expert mobile app developers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

4 Ways to Make Your Mobile Website Feel like a Native App

With more and more users accessing the web on their mobile devices, it has become essential for webmasters to optimize their website for popular mobile devices. Many organizations even launch a distinct mobile version of their website to deliver improved user experience. But may reports have highlighted how mobile users expect an app-like experience while accessing websites on their smartphones and tablets. In comparison to web applications, native apps are faster.

Further, the buttons respond to users in an instant, along with rendering the images and animations. So the speed and performance of a mobile website must be optimized to deliver app-like experience. However, the developers also have to incorporate certain features to make the website look and feel like native mobile applications. At the same time, they also need to use innovative technologies like XML and HTML5 to make the website accessible to the user regardless of his choice of mobile web browser.

4 Ways to Provide a Native App-like Feel to Your Mobile Website

1) Include Momentum Scrolling
Most developers find it a daunting challenge to create scrollable container on the mobile site that is both fast and responsive. But the iOS 5+ and Android 3+ make it easier for developers to create an efficient scrollable container using the overflow-scrolling property. As the momentum scrolling feature is native, it will make the mobile website feel like a native app. Also, the property can be enabled simply by adding it to a scrollable container. However, the property needs to be adjusted according to the version of iOS or Android. It also needs to be tested thoroughly to identify and fix performance flaws.

2) Make the Buttons More Responsive
Often the buttons of a mobile website affects app-like experience negatively. Most developers leave the default touch state of buttons and hyperlinks unaltered. It results in the mobile website requiring more time to respond to the initial tap of the user. So the performance of a mobile website can be optimized simply by activating state on mobile devices. The state will further contribute towards the button responding to the visitor tap in an instant, while indicating visually that the some action is being taken. At the same time, the mobile web browser will not put timeout, and ensure that the action is being executed by the user’s initial tap.

3) Use Innovative Hardware-Accelerated Animations
The use of animation also affects the responsiveness of a mobile website. Most native apps are designed with features to take advantage of the device’s hardware graphic acceleration features. But the websites often use JavaScript-based animations that make them slower. The latest mobile web browsers allow developers to use hardware-accelerated CSS3 animations. With the innovative option, developers can easily add animations to deliver an app-like experience. However, it is also important to check the CSS3 animations thoroughly to ensure that they are not affecting the speed and responsiveness of the mobile website.

4) Harness Natural Gestures
The native mobile applications are also effective in harnessing the natural gestures associated with the usage of touch devices. Most app developers take advantage of these gestures to optimize user experience. But mobile website developers often fail to capitalize on the natural gestures. Instead of relying only on tapping objects, the website developer must implement these natural gestures like pull to refresh, side to side swiping, and long press. Most mobile web browsers implement the gestures in distinct ways. So the mobile website must be tested to ensure that it is availing the full advantage of gestures.

An enterprise can also consider launching hybrid mobile apps to bridge the gap between native apps and mobile websites. The hybrid apps can avail some of the features of the native as well as web applications, while taking advantage of device features. Further, these can be downloaded by the users from the app stores, and accessed using the browser embedded in the app.

You can hire developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile application development services. If you would like to hire mobile app developers from us, we would be glad to assist you at Mindfire Solutions.

How Much Does a Mobile App Cost? It Depends on What You Need

Mobile applications have been growing increasingly popular and these are being used for numerous purposes today. Be it with respect to business, fun or entertainment, businesses are increasingly realizing the need to develop the mobile apps and use them essentially for marketing or promotional purposes. However, while developing a mobile app is a necessity, the cost involved in designing the same is a major point of concern. Now, the cost of developing an app is dependent on a lot of factors that most importantly include the individual choices and necessities. So, the cost that you will have to incur will be determined by the kind of application you are looking for. Here is a detailed overview:

The Type

The type of the app is the predominant factor determining the development cost. Now, those with the simple and basic functionalities are less expensive while the complex ones are costlier. If you feel that your business needs one of those dynamic applications, you must have a higher budget range. The gaming based apps, incorporating 3D effects and so on, are naturally the most expensive of all.

The Design

The designing as well as the coding of apps require quite a lot of efforts to be put into the same. Now, web and graphic designers work on the design once the programming along with the functionality part is done. The overall design, which often determines the success or failure of the app, includes splash screens, tab icons and several other assets that automatically involve considerable costs.

Functionalities of the App

The kind of functionalities that the application will include, the category under which it will come and many other factors are taken into consideration. As such, the desired set of functionalities that you want your app to include will determine the price of the same to a significant extent.

The Engagement of a Developer

A qualified or skilled developer is must when it comes to developing a mobile application. Hiring a developer involves costs that the company has to bear. Again, the cost varies depending upon whether an in-house developer or someone on an hourly basis is hired.

Allowing the App to Go Live

After the app is built in the xCode, the developer can help get the same in the store. Now, if the store is iTunes for example, an iTunesConnect account needs to be set up and all the necessary information needs to provided. These are technical tasks that not only need to be handled by the experts but also require a great deal of financial resources.

With the application ready in the store, all the analytics can be monitored on the back side by means of the iTune Connect. Entrepreneurs try out several ways of deriving revenue from the applications such as that of advertising inside the app and so on. The PPC or SEO campaigns can be facilitated as well and this would involve costs in the initial stages to lead to the desired revenues in the long run.

Submitting the Applications

Submission of the applications is yet another essential factor determining the cost of developing an app. The popular application stores have to be targeted to get the highest- possible revenues from the applications. If professionals are being hired for submitting the applications, the cost will definitely go up to a certain extent.

With the above-mentioned factors playing crucial roles in determining the prices of the applications, it is always wise to devise a budget well beforehand. However, with the mobile applications turning out to be a dire necessity, it is obvious for entrepreneurs to be ready to spend some extra bucks to get much more in return.

You can hire mobile app programmers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to speak to one of our expert mobile app developers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

Businesses Start Playing Nice with Enterprise Apps -Here is Why!

The wide ranges of Smartphones, tablets and various other devices have indeed changed the lives of the people to a great extent. It is but obvious for the businesses too, to opt for the different enterprise applications that actually help in a better accomplishment of the business goals and objectives. Researchers, enterprise owners and other tech publishers categorize the different kinds of apps depending upon their desired use and functionality.

Various Categories of Enterprise Apps

• To begin with, there are apps that are meant to enhance the overall productivity of the business enterprises. These applications pave the way for a smarter work environment in general.
• The business social networking apps, on the other hand, help in staying connected with everyone working within a particular organization.
• The Calendar or To-Do applications allow for an easy plus proper organization of projects.
• The applications meant for facilitating better communication help in a hassle-free connectivity while those that are for job hunting, allow people find their next big opening.
• There are applications based on finance, scanning as well as security too and these apps help in the better accomplishment of the official paper works. The security apps, on the other hand, perform the essential task of keeping the outsiders out of the business.

Tracing the Rise and Preference for Enterprise Apps

After having considered the varying categories of enterprise apps, let us look into the rise of the enterprise applications in the last few years. The list of the top ten apps was led by Email, Calendar, Contacts app and this was undoubtedly because email is certainly one of the most important mobile corporate applications. This was followed by the mobile- optimized corporate intranet access, something that the employees in any organization would make the most use of, irrespective of whether they are mobilized or not. The field service- based location applications, on the contrary, were not much prevalent mainly because it is considered to be an area of internal business operations.

While arranging the internal facing mobile applications built during the last year, 2012, business intelligence was found topping the list. Enterprise Resource Planning, also popularly referred to as ERP, was given special attention. ERP is basically the process of integrating the internal and the external management to facilitate a better flow of information.

After this, comes the top external facing mobile apps. While the applications facilitating the business- consumer relation appear to be the most important one, the second in line is social networking, which is quite closely related to the B2C applications. The rest of the apps in the list include mobile- optimized internet access to customer accounts, business to business, custom real time marketing tools, location based services, video streaming, mobile optimized internet shopping purchases, mobile optimized internet shopping research as well as real time consumer business intelligence.

The fact that the real time consumer business intelligence comes at the last is mainly because the mobile consumers first need to be aware of the B2C applications that affect the operations of the marketplace. It is after this that they can analyze and derive benefits out of the real time consumer business intelligence.

Enterprise mobility is gradually turning out to be a major point of concern these days, urging businesses to try out and implement the different enterprise applications. As such, the use of the same is being increasingly recognized as well as preferred by the enterprise mindsets. Consequently, there is a high possibility that in the coming years, businesses will focus more on using the existing apps while also developing newer ones for smoother and more effective operations. The higher the enterprise mobility, the better will be the productivity of the organization and hence, profits will soar in the long run.

You can hire mobile app developers from top mobile app development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to speak to one of our expert mobile app developers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

Why Use Newest Technologies in Mobile Apps Development

With more and more people switching to smartphones, mobile app development has become one of the fastest growing businesses. But with every other enterprise launching its own app, the mobile application development has also become much more complex and competitive. Also, it has become essential for a business to consider several factors to make the application popular. It is also important for an enterprise to beat competition by optimizing the aesthetic appeal and performance of the mobile app by using the latest and advanced technologies. On the whole, each company must make and implement a comprehensive strategy to build, promote and market the mobile application. However, the strategy also needs to concentrate on using the newest technologies to meet the latest trends in user choice and mobile app development.

Significance of Newest Technologies in Mobile App Development

Deliver Improved Contextual Experience
Most people use their smartphones to gather information on a particular topic. Each user also wants to access the latest and most relevant information on the topic. So an app must be effective in optimizing user’s contextual experience. Along with the user’s personal decisions, actions and emotions, the contextual experience also depends on his current location and environmental conditions. Therefore, the app needs to aggregate a wide variety of information gathered from many sources. The latest technologies have made it easier for developers to optimize contextual experience of users by gathering and aggregating the required information through their handheld devices.

Take Advantage of Smartphone’s Innovative Features
The huge popularity of smartphones has encouraged many enterprises to launch new mobile devices at regular intervals. Each new version of a smartphone also comes with a set of innovative and extended features. Most users also want to download apps that enable them to use these fresh features. For instance, the app can be popular when it allows users to avail some of the built-in features provided by their smartphones like camera, GPS tracker, maps and Cloud storage. The newest technologies help developers in optimize the performance of the application by incorporating features according to the facilities provided by the mobile device.

Meet the Upcoming Trends
Nowadays, a user has options to choose from a large collection of apps available under a specific category. Also, the choices and habits of users change on a constant basis. For instance, a number of recent reports have highlighted that users are opting for apps developed with voice input options. The Apple Siri, Google Now and Cloud computing have further enabled users to use their mobile devices in a completely distinct way. So the development strategy must consider the current and upcoming trends in user choice to launch a popular mobile app. The latest technologies enable developers to build application by targeting the latest trends in both user choice and mobile technologies.

Develop Cross-Platform Mobile Apps
An enterprise can always get higher ROI by launching the same app for different mobile platforms. By launching a cross-platform app, the company can target more users, while availing the distinct features provided by each mobile operating system. The conventional technologies are not effective in developing different versions of the same app by targeting different mobile platforms. But the latest technologies and mobile app development frameworks have made it easier for developers to build a cross-platform interface without putting any extra time and effort. Some frameworks even enable developers to build mobile application by using widely used web technologies like HTML, JavaScript and XML. A business can always adopt the newest technologies to launch an app by targeting more users regardless of their choice of mobile devices and operating systems.

An enterprise also has several options to build mobile applications by using the newest technologies. Many companies even outsource mobile app development project to avail the latest technologies without putting any extra time and effort. However, a business must invest in the latest technologies to get higher returns on its investment over a longer period of time.

You can hire developers from top mobile apps development companies in India who can help you build mobile apps within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would have a need for mobile app development or would like to speak to one of our top mobile app developers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

8 Solid Reasons Behind The Growing Popularity Of iPhone Apps

One of the most innovative creations of Apple Inc, iPhone has changed the face of mobile technology through offering a brilliant user interface that makes it handy and powerful. The device with its varied features, also scores high when it comes to utilities and applications. IPhone application development has become one of the highest revenue generating businesses today, triggered by the immense popularity of iPhone apps, a phenomenon which is exponentially increasing with the passage of time.

From businesses to individuals, everyone is inclined towards iPhones for completion of a wide spectrum of tasks. With such an ever-increasing demand, it’s high time we probe into the growing popularity of mobile app development. Here are 8 reasons why iPhone Apps have created a ripple in the marketplace:

• High Interactivity: Iphones have become the choicest Smartphones offering an outstanding promotional tool to individuals and businesses alike. Because of the high level of interactivity, iPhones offer a perfect platform for addictive and interesting applications. With the unique functionality, iPhone apps have revolutionized the manner in which users interact with their devices, thus appealing to individuals and businesses across the globe.
  
  

• Enhanced Usability: IPhone Apps are immensely user-friendly and once downloaded, can efficiently utilize iPhone’s touch functionality for optimizing functionality and usage for the users. This implies that users irrespective of age can utilize these apps in a hassle-free manner, one of the main reasons why businesses are increasingly leveraging these apps for process enhancement and co-ordination within departments. Customized iPhone apps have helped a number of businesses bring about a remarkable change in their overall performance.
  
  

• Intensive User Engagement: Due to the seamless user interface, iPhone apps trigger user engagement, thereby ensuring that users make use of these apps from time to time. Hence it can be said that these application have significant shelf-life, while in turn implies high Return on Investment.
  
  

• Diverse Usage: On one hand iPhone apps offer a brilliant promotional platform for businesses, while on the other hand, individuals can manage their day-to-day activities with the help of these apps. From playing games to shopping, browsing the net or sending e-mails, these apps offer something or the other engagement to every user.
  
  

• Brand visibility: Since iPhone apps are embedded in the phone, it is highly probable that people will use them or at least look at them frequently. This is what gives businesses a brilliant chance to power up their marketing strategies. To be specific, if you have your organization’s logo on the phone screen, it will gradually lead to brand recognition through regular visibility.
  
  

• Ease of Client Retention: Apart from engaging potential customers, every business would love to retain its existing customers. These apps offer you a great opportunity to do just that! Suppose you are offering your clients some kind of discounts through the apps. The very process implies that clients will hardly ignore the discounts and will continue availing your service because the discounts can be easily accessed.
  
  

• Potential for Notifications: Businesses can effectively use iPhone apps to notify their users about the different offers. Notification once or twice every month about some great deal will indeed help your business register an increase in sales volume.
  
  

• Extensive Customization: This is perhaps the most important reason why iPhone apps are increasingly becoming popular. Standard apps do target a large section of the users, but a customized app can focus on a particular problem or area of interest, thereby providing an effective solution for the same.
  
  

These are some of the reasons behind the growing popularity of iPhone apps. However, with the wide range of acts catering to segments like media, entertainment, games, education, training, and so on, it is highly expected that the popularity of the apps will soon reach new horizons.

We provide iPhone app development services. Discuss with our top iphone app developers about your project. We will be glad to assist you at Mindfire Solutions.

A Consistent Approach to Android Application Performance Testing

Android offers an open source software platform for mobile devices, initially created by Google and subsequently by Open Handset Alliance. The popularity of Android is on the rise as this platform is paving the way for a number of user-friendly apps. With more and more technological advancements, Android is making room for brighter features on Android phones. Irrespective of the time dedicated for Android design or the fact that an application developer is very careful with the programming part, nobody can deny the fact that mistakes can occur anytime leading to appearance of bugs. To reduce the impact of programming errors, and enhancing the productivity of the development procedure, it is crucial to adopt a consistent approach for Android application performance testing.

Phases of Efficient Android Application Testing

Before going into the details of consistent performance testing, let us discuss the crucial phases involved in testing of Android apps.

• Software Validation Testing: This testing phase can be sub-divided into functional testing, followed by non-functional testing, and finally documentation review. Code walk-through is a significant component of functional testing which involves tracing of the source code with the help of a miniature test case. The state program variables are monitored manually in order to analyze the assumptions and logic of the program. Most of the tests done revolve around the call flow and user-interface, involving a final testing done to locate new bugs. The non-functional sub-phase involves testing of user acceptance, compatibility and usability. Finally we have documentation review wherein things like design document review and architect reviews are performed.
  
  
• Performance Testing: This involves two elements: performance elevation followed by performance consulting. Performance elevation involves testing of code profiling, database, endurance, end-to-end transaction and so on, while performance consulting comprises capacity planning and architecture validation.
  
  
• Test automation: This phase ensures the quality assurance and comprehensiveness of the software through establishment of an automation framework, test execution, scripting and regression testing.
  
  

Significant Components of Android app performance testing

So far as performance testing is concerned a consistent delivery model needs to be followed across varying scenarios. This enables Android app developers to comprehend the performance level of the application on any given device from the end-users point of view. Let us understand the significant components of consistent performance tests on Android apps by taking a banking application as an example.

• Server Component: This component takes care of the business logic in case of the banking transactions initiated from a desktop browser or a mobile client.
  
  
• Network Emulator: This helps in the recreation of a range of network conditions like jitter, latency, packet error, reordering or loss, bandwidth restrictions, and so on, enabling developers to replicate environment like LAN, WAN, GPRS, 2G, 3G, etc. The network emulator helps in the determination of the traffic load that the application generates under diverse network conditions.
  
  
• Load Generator: This tool helps subjects the application to load under test conditions and evaluates the load times. Changes in configuration can be made like enhancing simultaneous users, increasing the load and boosting transactions occurring per second.
  
  
• Android Device: Both high-end and low-end devices are used for testing because performance varies and it is essential for a device to be configured accordingly.
  
  
• Performance Monitor: With the help of the performance monitoring tool ‘Perfmon’ which has windows mapping, the performance counters undergo configuration prior to the test. The data collector set once configured and started, leads to automatic data collection for every scenario.
  
  
• Android Debug Bridge: This is a tool that accompanies Android SDK, enabling interface with and control of the Android devices.
  
  
• Dalvik Debug Monitor Server: This tool for Android debugging makes room for things like screen capture, port-forwarding services, radio state information, location data spoofing, logcat and more.
  
  

It is very important to understand the plethora of resources involved before going for android app development. Performance testing is indeed crucial to understand how the application will perform with respect to satisfying the needs of diverse user groups.

We provide mobile app development services. If you would like to know what makes us expert android app developers, please visit Mindfire Solutions.

Are Your Mobile Apps Really Meeting Your Enterprise's Software Quality Standards?

With more and more users switching from their personal computers, it has become essential for companies to choose fresh and innovative options to suit the latest trends. As many reports have highlighted, a constant increase is noted in the number of people using mobile devices to access the web, obtain information, and stay connected with their loved ones.

So each company, nowadays, has to launch robust mobile apps to target the huge base on smartphone, tablet, and other mobile device users. Based on the needs and objectives of a business, it has options to launch specialized mobile apps to target its customers, employees or business partners. Along with the business-to-consumer (B2C) apps, a company can also launch the business-to-employee (B2E) or business-to-business (B2B) apps.

Regardless of the target audience, you have to ensure that the enterprise mobile app offers unique features while meeting the latest industry trends. In addition to the cost of developing and maintaining the app, you must concentrate on its quality and security features. While planning and developing the mobile app, it is important to consider certain points to ensure that it meets the software quality standards of your enterprise over a longer period of time.

Deciding the Right Mobile Platform

A modern user has options to choose from several mobile platforms. So a company has to design its mobile apps for a number of popular mobile operating systems. However, the mobile app development project may become more expensive and complex, as you have to use different programming languages and tools. Also, the apps must be developed and launched within a few weeks to beat the competitors. You must deploy individual teams to develop apps for each mobile platform, and meet higher quality standards.

Developing a Robust Mobile App

The mobile device users can choose from a wide range of free and paid apps. So they always look for high quality apps with advanced features and eye-catchy designs. As the enterprise app will represent your company, it becomes more important to choose the design and features that keep the users engaged and covert them into loyal customers. Along with launching the app, you must upgrade it on a regular basis to encourage the users to access the app frequently. You must remember that the user experience will have a direct impact on the growth, revenues and profits of your business.

Seamless Integration with the Back-end Systems

The popularity of a mobile app often depends on its seamless integration with the back-end database and systems. The integration also decides how information and content are delivered to the user. Your budget may not allow you to set up independent back-end databases and services for the mobile apps. So you must evaluate and modify your existing back-end system to work in sync with several mobile apps. It is also important to develop the right programmable interfaces that facilitate communication between the app and back-end systems. Also, the integration must be tested regularly to ensure a better and improved user experience.

Addressing the Privacy and Security Issues

The constant increase in the number of incidents related to mobile device frauds and scams has affected the popularity of mobile apps negatively. Many users, nowadays, are skeptical about installing new apps launched by comparatively unknown developers. Most of the operating systems are designed with advanced security features. Also, each app has to go through a comprehensive screening and reviewing process by the mobile platform owners. But you must address the privacy and security concerns of the users properly to gain the trust of the users, and convince them to download and access your mobile enterprise app regularly.

Overcoming Time and Budgetary Constraints

In comparison to traditional desktop applications, the mobile apps are developed within a shorter span of time. The mobile apps are required to be launched and developed within a few weeks. Also, the ongoing recessional phase of the economy has compelled many companies to develop mobile apps on a stipulated budget. So the team has to meet the schedules without compromising on the quality of the mobile app. It is also a good idea to manage the project through a manager who can manage software life cycles through dynamic and agile project management techniques.

If your company has prior experience in developing enterprise apps, the new mobile app can be developed without putting any extra time. But you must test each feature and specification of the app to ensure that it meets the high software quality standards of your organization.

We also provide mobile app development services. If you would like to know what makes us expert mobile app developers, please visit Mindfire Solutions.