There are more than two and a half million apps across both the iOS App Store and Android Play Store. With hundreds of new apps adding to the app market every day, the competition is stifling.
This is why the app performance and user experience have become more important than ever before.
On the other hand, users have less attention span, and they have less patience to wait for an app page to load. Today’s users outright dump any app that takes too much effort to complete simple actions. This is why app development companies need to ensure perfection in user experience before getting out on the market.
With the pre-launch app testing, a development company ensures the app’s best competitive positioning from day one. It ensures a gliding start for the app’s journey into an intensely competitive market.
Here we are going to explain the key app testing procedures carried out before the app launch.
Functional Testing
This is the most important app testing process that evaluates the app performance and actual output in actual devices. This is one of the key pre-launch app testing processes that app developers give high priority.
In this testing, how the main functionality of the app works in different devices is evaluated. For example, suppose the music app’s main functionality is to play music tracks with some standard controls. In that case, it is evaluated whether the same function and the associated controls work in all devices.
The functional testing, besides evaluating the performance of the main feature, also evaluated the following aspects.
- Whether the app launches without any hitches right from the device home screen.
- Whether the splash screen loads smoothly without freezing.
- Whether all the actionable buttons and links work perfectly.
- Whether the navigation works perfectly and without any exception.
- Whether for text input, keyboard responses work as intended.
- Whether the change in device orientation objects maintains consistent appearance.
- Whether interruptions such as text messages or calls performance problems.
- Whether other apps are running in the background causes performance problems.
Functional testing should be carried out in real devices, including the most popular and latest devices in both platforms, instead of emulators and simulators. When tested in real devices, they play a better role in displaying the app performance shortcomings.
Performance Testing
An app’s performance testing is done through two different testing procedures, such as load testing and stress testing. Simultaneously, the load testing is about evaluating the loading time for every app page, and stress testing concerns how the app features work under different stress conditions.
While loading speed is essential for the app performance, an app’s smooth functioning is guaranteed by how different features work under different workload or stress conditions. Performance testing is about evaluating both faster loading and smooth functioning of the app features.
Compatibility Testing
Compatibility testing is another crucial QA process that evaluates the app’s compatibility with different operating systems, devices, screen types and resolutions, and hardware specifications and configurations.
In the compatibility testing, various key factors are brought under the scanner for evaluation. The different mobile operating systems, their supported versions, devices, screen types, and hardware specifications are considered for testing the app’s compatibility.
Compatibility testing is done through multiple stages. First, compatible devices and OS versions are identified. Then the app is tested on those devices in different environments to detect the performance flaws or shortcomings. Lastly, all test cases are analyzed, and the compatibility of the app is decided.
As the mobile device ecosystem continues to expand, accommodating more and more advanced devices, and as flagship phones are coming with a variety of hardware configurations and screen resolutions and screen types, testing the app compatibility became more important than ever before.
Installation Testing
The ultimate pre-launch testing process that developers should give their focus upon is the installation testing. Since apps often have problems in faster installation or updates, this is a crucial test process for the entire app life cycle. Through installation testing, whether an app is smoothly installed, uninstalled, or updated is evaluated.
The poor or slower pace of installation is a recurring problem for many apps. This is where installation testing can play an important role by considering various installation problems. Certain factors are evaluated through installation testing.
Apart from evaluating the installation speed and behavior in different OS platforms, various use conditions and scenarios are evaluated that can pull down the installation speed and app update significantly.
Some of the effective test cases for installation testing include installing the app in different phone memory conditions, installing it in an SD card with different storage conditions, and whether after uninstalling the app, it vacates its space from memory. The same test also evaluates how the users can easily download and install updates for superior user experience.
Conclusion
A successful app is always tested aggressively and exhaustively to ensure that it has no fault lines or shortcomings in performance and user experience. These days, developers are launching minimum-features MVP versions; first, the app testing continues throughout the app life cycle. But pre-launch testing is given ultimate priority as creating a superb first impression is more important for the app’s journey into the marketplace.
