5 Mobile App Trends Developers Need To Look Out For

Guest post Jaykishan Panchal from MoveoApps, an iphone and app development company.

He enjoys writing about Technology, marketing & industry trends. He is tech enthusiast and love to explore new stuff.

There is no denying the fact that the entire mobile app landscape is headed towards a major change; we don’t need developers to remind us of the same. The whole scenario becomes more evident when we pause for a moment and go through some of the top mobile app trends that developers need to look out for, in the near future. Here is a list of some of the top mobile app trends, which will give you a better perspective:

Trend #1 – Cloud Applications Will Gain Ground

Cloud based mobile apps hold a promising future for the users by bringing forth a number of benefits for them. To begin with, these apps offer improved access to data from any location and at any time. This means that end-users such as enterprises, can aptly use the apps for real-time collaboration; they can use an app for real-time data crunching and also, use it to take some of the most important business- centric decisions.

Hardware and software independence is another benefit of cloud apps as these can work on multiple platforms and provide uniform UI and UX on the same. These also allow users to add various computing resources that include processors, additional memory or storage and bandwidth so that it meets their specific requirements aptly. Additionally, these are immensely flexible and scalable solutions, which help companies avail maximum returns on their investment.

Trend #2 – Cross Platform Tools Are on the Rise

Cross Platform mobile app development tools are making their presence felt on the market. Cross- platform tool adoption is steadily increasing and the number of developers who have adopted these tools, have grown from – 23% to 30% over the last few months.

There are many takers of these tools, especially to create apps for businesses that need to target masses. These businesses include but are not limited to media and entertainment firms, small, mid and large enterprises or just about anyone else who want to reach out to their potential customers and provide them a level playing field.

With scores of such tools available nowadays, more developers are utilizing them to build platform-agnostic apps for the end-users. These tools address a number of issues that are otherwise faced by an app development company.

The most significant of these issues is the flow of cash; using these tools they can easily create an app without investing much and launch the same on various platforms without the need to re-code it right from the scratch.

Also, new age cross platform tools are interesting because they easily offer better performance and functionality. Although they are still at a nascent stage, these tools help diminish the complexity that usually accompanies the development of high quality and feature-rich apps. Cross platform tools are immensely beneficial as compared to setting up of different development teams for specific platforms (thereby saving the costs).

Trend #3 – Enterprise Apps Will Make More Money than Consumer Apps

According to a research by Developer Economics, “43% of enterprise app developers make more than $10K per month versus 19% of consumer app developers reaching the same revenue level.” This can be attributed to many factors. For instance, businesses are willing to pay for apps, which make their workplaces more productive and increase their profitability.

Most of these enterprise apps are customized to suit the specific requirements of various firms. These include apps that are developed with the sole intention of enhancing the sales for a company and also, to advertising the products and services to various clients. Even communications and social networking apps for use within an enterprise are on the rise along with numerous productivity apps.

Trend #4 – Android to Overhaul iOS

Android has always locked horns with iOS and this situation is not going to change any sooner. On the contrary, the rivalry seems to be taking a new turn. Right now, Android is on an all-time high as a mobile platform to overhaul iOS in the long run with its constant evolution and numerous changes. This is clear from the market shares of these two top mobile platforms. So, what exactly is Android’s game plan?

Android is working towards reducing fragmentation, which is perhaps one of its biggest challenges at present. This will allow it to collect more data and revenue. It is speculated that soon, there will be about 4 Android devices per 1 Windows or iOS device for mobile users around the world. This hints at development of apps for the platform to meet the demands of the rapidly increasing user-base. Also, developers are working on creating more apps for a wide range of Android Wear – a range of smartwatches from Android, which have been around much before the Apple Watch and gaining revenues from apps developed specifically for the wrist.

Trend #5 – Applications for wearables

Wearables are no longer unknown territories for developers; what started with Google Glasses and Fitness Bands has now taken a turn towards smartwatches such as Android Wear and Apple Watch, which we mentioned in the point above. As of now, smartwatches are dependent on smartphones to function. But in the near future, we can very well see standalone smartwatches as well, which can boost the development of apps in variety of industry verticals.

Designing for the wrist is completely different from that of designing for handhelds. Developers and designers need to take into consideration the exceptional features and functionalities of these devices, especially the small screen real estate to develop outstanding apps rich in terms of their quality.

To sum up

Cloud based apps, enterprise apps, cross platform tools, exponential growth of Android over iOS and creating innovative apps for wearables are some of the trends, which developers need to look out for. As always, they also need to strive to make the most of the advancement in technology and focus on user engagement for creating innovative mobile apps. Do you know of any other app trend to be added to this list? Do share your thoughts with us via your comments.