The global pandemic and changing expectations for how and when users interact with mobile devices have contributed to the continued growth in popularity of mobile application development services & mobile app architecture. Installation of apps increased by 31% year over year, and user engagement, as measured by sessions, increased by 4.5%, according to the Mobile App Trends 2023 report. The Google Play store has 3.48 million apps, while the Apple App Store has over 2.22 million.
Sales of 5G devices are driving the demand for new apps, and post-pandemic device behavior, such as the desire for shopping convenience and delivery services as well as free time fillers, whether games or home fitness apps, is still present. While COVID impacted some of this behavior, most of these trends were already rising. Customers of all types of businesses, B2B and B2C, are demanding mobile-first interactions, which has prompted many organizations to think about custom mobile app development. The growth has increased the need for firms to think about application modernization strategies.
The details of mobile app architecture will be covered in this guide, which can help direct the process of creating a mobile app for the market in 2023.
What Constitutes a Quality Mobile App Architecture?
Today, many apps are created without using any architecture or standards. An application that lacks architecture is:
- Longer and more expensive to develop.
- Difficult to maintain, especially if staff members change.
- Longer and more expensive to develop.
- Difficult to test
- Error-prone
To speed up mobile application development, a good mobile app architecture will enforce good software development principles at the right stages of the process. It will also provide a clear path for the data flow that simplifies work and supports clarity regarding how to scale or expand the app in the future.
An architecture for mobile apps that are clearly defined makes testing more productive, supports flexibility and Agile development methodologies, and makes future maintenance simpler and less bug-prone. In the short and long terms, a solid mobile app architecture will save time and money.
Important Elements to Take into Account When Creating Mobile App Architecture
Device Type
When following a mobile app architecture, decide on the platform first (iOS, iPadOS, Android, Windows, Cross-platform), and then take into account the various smartphone models available today. These crucial facts can be used to choose the best development dimensions.
When creating a mobile app, it’s crucial to keep the following things in mind:
To ensure that every user, regardless of the device they choose, has the best experience possible, the goal at this stage is to deliver the most consistent experience across various platforms and device sizes (tablet vs. mobile, model varieties).
- Screen resolution and size
- Screen resolution
- CPU processor
- RAM (memory)
Descriptive Frameworks
Development frameworks are considered when establishing the tech stack and designing the mobile app architecture. For creating web apps, both for the front-end and the back-end, frameworks offer libraries, basic templates, and components.
Bandwidth Situations
The front-end frameworks Bootstrap, Foundation, React, Angular, Vue, and Backbone are used to create mobile apps. Developmental frameworks for the back-end (server-side), which include Ruby on Rails, Flask, Django, Laravel, Swift, Xamarin, React Native, and Flutter, among many others, are dependent on the target platforms and programming language of choice.
UI/UX Design
When it comes to mobile app architecture, UI/UX design is crucial for creating positive first impressions (a strong user interface) and retaining users (how it works – a strong UX). Online success depends on having a good user experience (UX) design. Still, mobile UX is challenging due to the shifting user expectations and best practices of each operating system (OS) and device type.
The mobile app architecture must balance UI and UX in the design stage. To ensure the app is providing value, start by comprehending the fundamentals of mobile UX design and the latest trends for 2021.
Navigation
The user’s first point of contact with the design is navigation, affecting both the front and back end. A great mobile UX design makes it simple for users to navigate the page and discover new areas. Navigation requires familiarity, and a good way to make it easier is to weigh the various functionalities that API Integration brings.
The following best practices for navigation make the mobile app simple to use and lessen friction for customers:
- Hamburger Menu: The three-line “hamburger menu,” which can be found in the top bar or navigation drawer, is a favorite among mobile apps due to its familiarity. Hover over menus to improve navigation and cut down on clicks.
- Search: A strategically placed search bar improves usability; the top right position is the default.
- There are numerous ways to navigate an app, including fixed bars of buttons at the top and/or bottom, rails (a vertical bar), drawers (hidden navigation), and tabs (screened content with fixed titles).
- Navigation is made simpler by familiar icons, such as those for home, search, photos, and folders.
- Labels that clearly state a button, option, or feature’s purpose can help distinguish information.
- Depending on how the categories are named and arranged, site organization through categorization can make site navigation easier or more difficult. Abide by recommended information architecture practices.
- Swipes that support gesture-based navigation can make navigation easier.
- The app’s support for scrolling in comparison to fixed elements
- Thumb zone navigation – For improved usability, design with the thumb zone in mind.
Research and user feedback are the best ways to guarantee a positive user experience (UX) with navigation. Early testing of how the app looks and functions often include wireframes.
Conclusion
Any mobile app architecture and tech stack must be carefully taken into account for it to be successful. Planning which features to include in the app, how to include them, and how these features will be connected through layers can be facilitated by paying attention to your business requirements and user stories. There are many factors to consider, and the app may not live up to expectations if the wrong assumptions are made.
Contact us if you want to shorten the time it takes to get your app to market, don’t have the internal staff to build it, or just want to leave it to the professionals with thousands of hours of experience building native, hybrid, and cross-platform mobile apps. If you’re thinking of getting your applications developed by the experts then get in touch with Golpik Inc. to get started!