Mobile apps are not just the next (or current) big thing. They have become a part of our lives — in a way, steering our choices and decisions. By merely sitting on our couch, we apply for jobs, manage our projects, talk to our friends, the order in essentials, and even pay our bills.
The convenience is unsurpassable, and thanks to the user-friendly functionalities, even our grandparents seamlessly book cabs, play games, and video call us.
Mobile apps are here to stay. Imagine the possibilities. According to GoodFirm’s global survey, at least 31.85% of survey participants have 21-40 apps installed while 8.87% have over 100 apps.
The very research also states that an average user consumes at least 13 apps in a day. Another interesting statistic to look at is the surge in mobile app revenue. While the global revenue in 2018 was 365 billion USD, it’s projected to be at 693 billion USD in 2021, according to Statista.
Besides, global users have shelled out a sum total of 28 billion USD on mobile apps by the third quarter of 2020, says Marketing Charts. Take a look at the following chart for a better understanding.
The Importance Of Automated Mobile App Testing
Now that we’ve understood the big picture, what remains is knowing what goes into building a successful mobile app. For apps to perform the way they’re designed to perform, mobile app testing is unarguably an imperative process. It fixes any potential errors before the apps go into the production server.
What could pose a challenge, though, is — users consume apps on different types of devices. Every device is wired differently and some may not support a few apps due to reasons like outdated software, old processors, etc.
A few mobile brands also have their own software builds. According to Statcounter, the worldwide market share of Android users is 72.48% with iOS at 26. 91%. The following stats also show that Android versions like 4.4, 5.1, and 6.0 are still in use.
You get the drift — the market is huge. And you cannot possibly test your apps manually on different devices with different versions of OS. That’s why automated mobile app testing is performed. Offering you the flexibility to deliver faster in a test-driven development environment, automation testing is a proven work through.
We’ve talked about automation testing of mobile UI and how to perform it, in-depth, here. If you’re starting out on automated mobile app testing, we recommend taking a look at it.
You can also read more details about Mobile testing in the guide here.
Do You Really Need Real Mobile Devices?
Finally, let’s get to the core of our conversation — do we really need real mobile devices?
With the speed at which technology is advancing, mobile users have started to develop zero tolerance for apps that are slow or buggy. And remember that our users consume our apps on real devices and factors like low battery, poor WiFi, outdated software can affect the app’s performance.
While a few argue that emulators serve the purpose of testing an app, unless you’re only testing the UI, they are not sufficient. If your apps make use of cameras, additional sensors like fingerprint, ambient light, etc. — you have to test on real mobile devices. After all, what’s the point of having a feature that isn’t supported across all devices?
It’s humanly impossible to manually test all the app features on different devices. Besides, it’s not cost-effective. Find this intimidating? Fret not — Testsigma offers a solid automated mobile app testing tool with the option to easily execute your tests on thousands of real devices. It’s an automation ecosystem that is built to handle more than just mobile app testing.
Our no-code tool offers testers a simple way of writing test cases. The tool lets you automate test cases while they are written in English and it can be integrated with various project management tools.
We also recommend taking a look at our blog post where we take you through automating mobile apps using Testsigma. It’s that simple. While launching an app is one thing, handling its updates is a different ball game altogether.
We use an AI engine that can handle ongoing updates without affecting the app. This engine can also detect errors that are shared, real-time, through email, Slack, Teams, etc. Besides, all tests are carried out on a secure and scalable cloud which means scalability isn’t a problem at all.
In closing — yes, real mobile devices are required for automated mobile app testing otherwise all our efforts and tests are fragmented and futile. Testsigma can empower you to build a competitive advantage in the evolving mobile app market.
Sounds interesting? Let’s have a conversation; Testsigma is offering a free 30-day trial for you to experience the product. Check it out here.
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