Native Apps VS Hybrid Apps: Some Thoughts on the Never-Ending Debate
We have all been there: navigating through an app thinking “Who on earth made this?” because the user experience is awful and it takes forever to perform anything at all.
Why do we say this? Because before we dive into the issue whether it’s better to stick to native or hybrid app development, it’s absolutely worth saying that whatever route is taken, the users of the app will expect seamless experience. This, as our team at SFL has seen more than once, is the most important aspect of any development route and there’s no use debating over the native vs hybrid issues if excellent performance isn’t achieved. Why? Just take a look at these stats:
If your customers don’t fall into the 5% of users who don’t care much about their mobile user experience, then you really have to put every effort into making it exceptional.
Some important stuff about native and hybrid apps
In a sense, a native application can be compared to a custom-tailored designer dress. It fits the right way and it just… feels right. It is an application that’s developed specifically for a mobile operating system (like Objective-C or Swift for iOS or. Java for Android). Each OS has a robust ecosystem, technical and user experience guidelines that this application strictly adheres to. Thus, this application feels familiar to the user and operates fast.
Why is “feeling right” important? Because the user already knows intuitively how to navigate through the application. When buying a new mobile device, this user spends a significant amount of time getting used to its navigation and it never comes without its frustrations. A native app gives the opportunity to save the user from new frustrations of getting used to the navigation of your app. One more advantage of native applications is that they have access to the built-in capabilities of the device (like GPS, contacts, camera, and others).
Now, back to hybrid applications. These are separate website that just happen to come with the packaging of a native application. It’s hard to distinguish a hybrid app at a glance, because they will often have the initial look and feel of a native app.
There are a couple of approaches to building hybrid apps. The most common one is probably using web technologies like HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. This approach boils into building single-page applications (SPA) running locally, enriched with JavaScript functionality to access mobile native features. PhoneGap, Cordova and Ionic all operate in this manner. The drawback of this approach is that performance is significantly impacted.
Another common approach is providing a framework for developing the application and then compiling for different platforms through mapping to platform-specific elements and substituting native-specific elements with platform-specific implementations. This approach is much better from the perspective of performance. React Native and Xamarin use this approach.
The use of hybrid app development is appealing because it significantly reduces the time to market and the cost of development- one piece of code tackling multiple device ecosystems. It also doesn’t require profound knowledge of a single ecosystem and can be performed by developers with rather limited skillsets. On the flip side, however, these applications are rather limited functionally, because not every phone functionality is mapped into frameworks. Imagine if your app looks the same for Android and iOS. This way or another, this will affect user experience not in the best way.
So, why native? And why hybrid?
In order to understand this, it’s necessary to understand the following: the decision to build a mobile app is fueled by one of these two motivations: you either want to catch up with one of your competitors or have a completely new idea that no one has ever thought of.
Whatever the reason, the client usually wants the application to be ready YESTERDAY. But that rush usually means that a lot is compromised on the quality of the application, and a lot of pressure to make decisions quicker than you’re ready.
So, when making the decision whether to go with native or hybrid approach, keep in mind the following:
- Native applications perform better, have better user experience and higher security. If you have enough funds and the time restriction isn’t as tight, it’s better to stick with native applications.
- If you want to cut down significantly on the time-to-market and development effort, hybrid applications may do the trick for you.
It’s all about experience
The important thing to keep in mind, no matter if you choose to go with the native or hybrid approach, is user experience. Smartphone use has already surpassed the use of desktop to access applications and surf the net, so seamless experience is the only thing that can guarantee that your mobile presence won’t turn into a disadvantage for you.
Тhe performance of the app and its user experience vary significantly based which development framework is chosen. Needless to say, the native development approach is unmatched from both perspectives. It’s faster and more reliable, something that may be very important especially for applications in a number of niches where security is key.
These stats show how the performance of the end app is important to the end users:
A seamless user experience should solve all issues and bring an unmatched experience in terms of navigation, adaptability and layout, interactivity, animation, typography, color, in-app behavior and much more. This is something that can be achieved to the fullest with native approach only.
For hybrid applications, there’s the appeal to build it once and then release it across multiple platforms. These apps are platform agnostic but it usually means compromising on features and UI because you have to adapt to mainly Android and iOS one, easier to build; two, take less time to market, and three, maintain one code base.
Another factor to consider what approach to take is a company’s internal dynamics and release cycles. What is your strategy towards app development? Do you run a program that takes an agile approach to mobile development (i.e., trying to release working software at short, frequent intervals) or do you prefer a waterfall approach (i.e., with a turn-around time of several months)?
Release cycles and Native VS Hybrid Approach
The frequency of your planned releases is also a critical factor to consider. Users hate frequent updates, and if you have to push a new version of your app every 2 weeks, remember that not all users have updates installing automatically.
In hybrid applications, the update process passes very smoothly. If there’s an update of an internal page, the user will immediately get to see it and can act upon it.
For native applications, the updates usually take place automatically for most users who choose this option. But for those who don’t, this means they have to update manually every time. In case of very frequent updates, this can get irritating to the point of uninstalling the end application.
Therefore, make sure to pay attention to the frequency of your updates, too.
The takeaway
The debate on native vs hybrid approach is one that doesn’t have a “right” or “wrong” answer: it depends on your resources, time, frequency of updates and mostly, the experience you have in mind for your end users.
About this author:
Arthur Baghdasaryan is a Senior iOS developer with an endless passion for life, learning and sharing experiences.
