How to Design an App for Both Android & iOS
When designing a mobile app it needs to be able to be used by both iOS and Android. Although the interface and UX for both Apple and Google systems are different, you can design an app that will work well on both systems.
Here are the 5 keys ways to design an app for both Android and iOS:
1. Expertise
Make sure that the developer working on the app has the level of skill to be able to develop apps for both the Android and iOS platform. Without this it will be difficult if not impossible to come up with a product that works properly on both systems.
2. What Is the App Required to Do?
You need to establish what the priorities for the app are — what does the app need to do, how will the user interact with the app, and what does it need to look like?
If the features you need are the same or similar for both iOS and Android then developing the app to work on both will be less complicated than if there is a larger degree of difference.
3. Find the Similarity
Both Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS have certain similar features, for example, things like buttons, push alerts and icons all follow the same sorts of patterns. This makes design easier and the transition from one platform to another can be accomplished. The more similarities you can find between the two systems the easier making the dual app will be.
4. Bypassing Interface Problems
As well as similarities in the systems you will, of course, find plenty of differences between Apple and Android devices. For example, for an Apple device, you must account for the ability to go back in each app whereas in Android this is part of the phone’s design. Differences are wide-ranging and include things like navigation and even fonts. The more of these differences you find, the more complex a process is needed to make the app workable on both operating systems.
5. Test on All Platforms
If you are developing for multiple platforms the app must be tested stringently on each one. For dual functioning applications this will take more time and that must be accounted for in the project development and design. If you have insufficient testing the app will not work properly and will not be taken up by a wide user group. Plan for at least double the amount of testing time to make sure the app works equally well on both iOS and Android.
To conclude, it is possible to release an app designed for use on both iOS and Android at the same time. However, it is important to keep the above 5 factors in mind when starting on a project of this nature.
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