Posts tagged "Cross-Platform App Development"

Cross-Platform App Development with Flutter

Flutter is Google’s free framework app for cross-platform development. It is popular among software developers and business owners alike because of its ease of use and time-saving functions.

Today we’re going to look at its advantages and why it dominates the mobile app development market.

Flutter is one of the highest-rated frameworks when it comes to developing cross-platform apps. Its popularity is mainly because only one codebase needs to be written for use across all devices (Android, iOS, web). Google itself uses the framework for modules in Google Assistant, and you will also find it in high-performing e-commerce sites such as Groupon and eBay. The SDK (software development kit) uses the Dart language – developed by Google as a response to JavaScript’s popularity. Dart programs run directly on a server but convert to Java on a browser.

Flutter has a large widget library, and users can customize and change any widget easily. The Flutter community has embraced open-sourced technology, and its developers are consistently publishing usable codes to support each other in cross-platform app development.

While there are a few disadvantages to using Flutter, advantages far outweigh them, and we will list both below.
However, it is up to each business to understand their specific mobile app needs in order to make the right choice about which framework to embrace.

Advantages

  • Use of a single codebase across all platforms (including web, desktop, etc.). This increases engineer productivity and speeds up the launch date of the app.
  • ‘It’s All Widgets’: Flutter users have access to a great library of customized widgets to enhance app visuals. Better still, there is no need to be concerned about the UI on different devices.
  • Skia Graphics Library: The Skia Graphics Library is an open-sourced and free graphics library, acquired by Google in 2005. One of the advantages of using Skia is that it redraws the UI every time the view changes in an app. Reloading is, therefore, faster and smoother.
  •  ‘Hot Reload’: The ‘Hot Reload’ feature allows code changes to be viewed immediately and updated in real-time. Bugs and mistakes can be fixed on the go, increasing productivity and reducing testing times.

Disadvantages

  • Large file size: Flutter’s widgets take up a lot of space, and some developers consider it ‘heavy’. They can also be slow to download.
  • Restricted quantities of tools and libraries: Flutter was only launched in 2017, and there may be a limited amount of functions in the existing library. These things will develop, but it will take time.

Speak to a software developer today to see if using Flutter meets your business mobile app needs. They will highlight the speedy turnaround time (TAT) benefits as well as money saved by higher productivity enjoyed by using its many time-saving features.