Similar to native apps, these applications are downloadable and have access to mobile features like camera, GPS, contact list, etc. Unlike native apps development, they are far easier to develop as one can maintain a unified code base for both Android and iOS.
From the explanation above, it’s quite prominent that web apps and mobile apps differ significantly in terms of how they are built. Moreover, users’ way of interacting with them also differs as mobile users use gestures like scrolling and pinch to zoom on their touch screen mobiles. Naturally, the methods to test both are bound to differ as well.
Although the testing tools and techniques used for both differ significantly, there are certain tests that are common for both:
Functional tests
Performance tests
Usability tests
Compatibility tests
Localization tests
Web app testing aims to ensure that websites deliver a highly functional, bug-free experience across browsers and devices. On the other hand, mobile app testing aims to identify any compatibility issues or bugs for the native or hybrid mobile app across a wide range of Android and iOS devices.
Tools or Frameworks for Web Application Testing
Web app testing aims at rolling out applications that deliver a seamless user experience across multiple browsers. It also aims at ensuring that web-applications continue to perform perfectly when accessed from different platforms.
Although there are several commercial tools available, Selenium has been the most preferred tool suite among the QA community for years. It allows QAs to automate website UI tests across popular web browsers like Chrome, Safari, Firefox, etc. QAs can also run parallel tests across desired environments using a Selenium Grid.
Additionally, QAs can also simulate keyboard and mouse inputs using Selenium to replicate end-user actions. A key reason why Selenium has gained popularity is that it provides compatibility with several programming languages. This makes it very convenient for the testers to design test cases.
Tools or Frameworks Used for Mobile App Testing
As mentioned earlier, the mobile app ecosystem is complex as there are different categories of apps. Before testing mobile apps, testers need to identify whether the app to be tested is the native, hybrid, or mobile web.
Listed below are a few popular tools that can be used for running automated tests for native, hybrid, and mobile web apps.
1. Appium
Based on Selenium, Appium is the most preferred open-source tool when it comes to testing hybrid, native and mobile web apps. Using this tool one can automate test scenarios for both Android and iOS apps on real mobiles, emulators, or simulators. QAs need to create separate test scripts for Android and iOS. Appium also allows QAs to choose the programming language to work with.
2. Espresso
Developed by Google, Espresso is a native open-source framework designed specifically for automated UI testing of Android applications. Espresso is a part of the Android SDK and is used for native mobile app development. Intuitive API and automatic synchronization are a couple of key benefits this framework offers. Espresso tests can be written in Java and Kotlin.
3. XCUITest
XCUITest is a UI testing framework that is bundled along with the XCode IDE. It allows testers to automate UI tests for native iOS apps. XCUITests can only be written in Objective-C or Swift. This framework executes iOS tests much faster and is more known for its reliability.
The Role of Real Devices in Testing Mobile and Web Applications
The sole purpose of test automation is to gain faster and accurate feedback to develop bug-free applications. This can only be achieved by running test automation scripts on real devices. Testing in real user conditions will help yield results similar to those in the real world.
Testing on real devices requires an on-premise device lab. However, this requires enormous investment, and it is naturally not feasible for small organizations. To overcome this challenge, opt for a cloud-based testing infrastructure like Browser Stack.
BrowserStack’s real device cloud provides teams with 2000+ real devices and browsers for comprehensive manual and automated testing of mobile and web applications. One can test on a wide range of devices (both mobile and desktops) running on unique operating systems like Android, iOS, Windows, or macOS. Users simply need to sign up and get started for free by selecting the desired device-browser-OS combination to test on.
As mentioned earlier, the digital landscape is constantly evolving towards a mobile-centric ecosystem. To maintain a competitive edge in the market, businesses need to ensure that they incorporate both mobile and web app testing strategies with equal importance.