Mobile App Testing: Types, Features, Stages, and Methods / ITech content

You've developed a smartphone app. What to do next? Before publishing it on the App Store, Google Play, or GitHub, you should thoroughly check the app for errors and flaws. If you immediately release it to the store, users may leave negative reviews due to crashes, freezes, incorrect display of interface elements, or even a complete failure to launch. Conducting testing and troubleshooting will help you avoid a bad reputation and increase your app's chances of success. Developing an ambitious mobile app is unthinkable without high-quality testing. In this article, we'll explore the mobile app testing process, as well as the main challenges and pitfalls developers may encounter. Testing is a key stage that allows you to identify errors and improve the functionality of the product, ensuring its success in the market.

Ruslan Muradov

QA Lead at SberDevices and Skillbox expert on the course "Software Engineer" "Testing" offers unique knowledge and experience in software testing. In his role as QA Lead, he is responsible for leading testing teams, managing quality assurance processes, and implementing testing best practices. His expertise in software testing, along with his experience at SberDevices, allows him to share relevant knowledge with students in the Skillbox course. Students gain the practical skills and theoretical foundations necessary for a successful career in software testing. This course is ideal for those who want to become a QA professional and reach new heights in their career.

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What are the features of mobile testing?
What are the types of mobile applications?
What do mobile application testers check?
What are the types and tools of mobile testing?
What errors do testers most often find?

What is mobile testing?

A tester's job is to ensure that the software functions as required. This includes checking that all functions work correctly, that fonts and buttons display correctly on different devices, and optimizing internal processes so that they do not consume unnecessary resources, such as memory and battery power. A tester plays a key role in ensuring the quality of a software product, which in turn increases user satisfaction and facilitates the successful launch of the application.

Testing mobile applications is a significant challenge due to the vast variety of devices available on the market. There are millions of devices, each with a unique manufacturer, its own operating system version, and various screen sizes and resolutions. Even if an application demonstrates excellent performance on one device, there is no guarantee that it will function equally well on another. Effective testing requires considering all these factors to ensure compatibility and stable operation of the application across all platforms.

Modern devices often operate in a wide variety of unpredictable conditions. Users may change time zones or dates, take the subway with poor signal strength, turn on airplane mode, or connect via VPN. At the same time, it is important to consider the numerous connected accessories, SIM cards, and Bluetooth devices with which applications must also interact effectively. This creates additional challenges for developers who must ensure the stable operation of their applications under all circumstances.

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A tester is a specialist who checks software for errors and non-compliance with requirements. Their main task is to ensure the quality of the product by identifying and documenting defects and suggesting solutions.

To become a tester from scratch, you need to master the basic knowledge of software testing. It is recommended to study types of testing, such as functional, load, regression, and automated testing. Understanding the software development lifecycle and Agile and Scrum methodologies will also be useful.

It is necessary to develop analytical skills to effectively identify errors and their causes. Knowledge of programming fundamentals, at least at a basic level, will help you understand code and interact with developers.

To start your career, you can take testing courses or independently study materials from open sources. Practice also plays a key role: participation in projects, internships, and freelancing will help you acquire the necessary skills.

After completing your training, it is important to create a high-quality resume and prepare for interviews where you will need to demonstrate your knowledge and skills. With work experience and ongoing training, you can advance your career, moving to more senior positions, such as a senior tester or quality manager.

A mobile tester must consider all possible situations, including standard and non-standard ones. In this profession, it is important to remember Murphy's Law: if there is even the slightest possibility of an error, it most likely will occur. Therefore, thorough testing of mobile applications is a key aspect of ensuring their stability and functionality.

Quality engineers, also known as specialists in this field, use a wide range of techniques and tools to check all critical functions during the development stage. These methods ensure high product quality and minimize the likelihood of problems occurring at subsequent stages.

Types of Mobile Applications

Mobile applications can be classified into four main categories. The first category includes native apps, which are developed for a specific operating system, providing high performance and access to device functionality. The second category is cross-platform apps, which allow developers to create a single version of an app for multiple operating systems, reducing development time and costs. The third category includes web apps, which run through a browser and don't require installation on devices. The fourth category includes hybrid apps, which combine elements of native and web apps, providing device access and offline functionality. Each of these categories has its own advantages and disadvantages, which influences the choice of the appropriate solution depending on business goals and objectives.

Native — when code is written separately for each platform in a native programming language. For example, for Android, this is Kotlin, and for iOS, it is Swift. It's easy to spot such an app: it's installed directly on your device, has its own icon on your desktop, and opens even without an internet connection.

The VKontakte app for iOS is native. Screenshot: Skillbox Media

Cross-platform—when the code is written once and then run on different devices. Such applications are usually built outside the guidelines of their respective systems, and therefore may look foreign. But you can save time and money by entrusting the development of several versions to one team.

The Dixy application is cross-platform. Its interface is identical on iOS and Android. Screenshot: Skillbox Media

Web apps are technically not exactly mobile apps, but rather websites adapted for mobile devices. For example, the Tinkoff Bank website is a web app. You can even display its icon on your smartphone's desktop and run it like a regular native app.

Tinkoff Bank web version - an example of a mobile web application Screenshot: Skillbox Media

Hybrid - this is when a web page or site opens inside a mobile application. This usually works based on WebView technology: there is a browser window that loads content, and there are several native interface elements, such as navigation buttons, loading animation, and others.

The TripCase application is hybrid. Some of the content is loaded as a web page. Screenshot: Skillbox Media

Each type of application has its own characteristics and challenges. For example, native applications require a tester to deeply understand the nuances of a specific platform, while WebView applications require testing on a variety of devices. There are a number of tools and helpful guidelines that can significantly simplify this testing process. Using automated tests, specialized emulators, and tools to ensure cross-browser compatibility can help optimize the testers' work and improve the quality of the final product.

What do mobile testers check?

Testing an application on popular devices is an important stage of development. Comprehensive testing on all smartphones and tablets is impossible due to their diversity. Therefore, at the initial stage, statistics are collected to determine which devices users will most often use the application on. Testing is conducted primarily on the most popular models, which helps identify potential issues and improve the user experience. Focusing on popular devices increases testing efficiency and facilitates a successful app launch. You don't necessarily need to purchase devices for testing. There are many online services that allow you to emulate various devices. One such service is browserstack.com, which allows you to check the compatibility of web applications on various platforms and devices. This saves time and money, allowing developers and testers to focus on product quality without the need for physical access to each device.

Screenshot: Browserstack / ITech content

The app must function correctly on both outdated and the latest versions of operating systems and browsers. If the app is not compatible with earlier versions, the developer can implement a notification strongly recommending users to update their system or browser. Testing on the latest versions allows you to evaluate how the app utilizes the latest features and functions provided by modern platforms. This ensures optimal user interaction and maintains the app's competitiveness in the market.

Content display is an important aspect of mobile app development, as they can run on a variety of devices, from smartwatches to tablets. Screen diversity is only part of the problem. The key is to correctly display interface elements at different screen resolutions and orientations. For example, graphic elements should maintain their proportions and not distort when the device is rotated. This ensures ease of use and improves the user experience, which, in turn, positively affects the app's ranking in stores.

Interactivity and gestures in mobile apps. Users interact with mobile apps primarily through gestures such as swipes, taps, and double-taps. Testers conduct tests to ensure these gestures work correctly. Effective interaction with an app directly impacts the user experience, so it's important that all gestures work reliably and intuitively. Gesture testing helps identify potential bugs and improve functionality, thereby ensuring user satisfaction and improving app store rankings. Mobile app performance is crucial for users. Fast loading times and instant responses make it easy to check email, chat with friends, and order food. App testers carefully analyze app speed using various performance profilers. They identify bottlenecks and optimize the app to provide users with the fastest and most efficient experience. Optimized performance leads to increased user satisfaction and, as a result, an increase in the number of downloads and active users of applications.

Testing application performance in Android Studio Screenshot: Android for Developers / ITech content

The app demonstrates its performance across a range of signal strengths. Some users use it in an office with reliable Wi-Fi, while others work in environments with limited signal, such as on the subway. The ability to connect directly, through a proxy, or via a VPN also impacts performance. Testers conduct tests to evaluate how the app responds to changes in connection quality and sudden connection interruptions. This ensures stable operation of the app in a variety of conditions.

UX/UI usability is a key aspect of mobile app development. Each mobile platform has its own design guidelines: Google Material Design for Android, and Human Interface Guidelines for iOS. These guidelines are designed to simplify user interaction with the interface, allowing users to perform actions intuitively and without delays. Therefore, testers must verify that the app meets these standards to ensure a high level of user experience and end-user satisfaction.

Application updates and their availability play an important role in maintaining the quality and functionality of mobile solutions. Testers thoroughly check that the app meets the requirements of major app stores, such as the App Store and Google Play. An important aspect is also checking updates for compatibility with new versions of operating systems and web browsers, which ensures stable operation and an improved user experience. Regularly testing updates helps avoid potential issues and ensures that users always have access to the latest app functionality.

Software testing involves a variety of tests performed by testers. The most important aspects are checking interaction with the server, analyzing the application's behavior when the time zone changes drastically, and testing permission request algorithms. The main goal is to test the product in as many scenarios as possible, which helps identify potential problems and improve the quality of the final product. Effective testing helps ensure the reliability and stability of the software, which in turn contributes to user satisfaction.

Mobile Application Testing Methods

There are many testing methods, and the choice of a specific approach depends on the testing objectives, application characteristics, and quality requirements. Let's consider the most universal testing methods that are suitable for various scenarios and application types.

Manual Testing. Testers manually write and execute test cases and scripts that simulate user actions to test the functionality, interface, and other aspects of the application. Manual testing is typically used in the early stages of development.
Automated testing. The more complex a product is, the more difficult and time-consuming it is to test manually. Automated tests help eliminate human error and speed up the process. Popular tools include the Appium framework, as well as interface testers such as Espresso and XCUITest.
Performance testing. Application performance is tested under various loads and conditions: with a large number of users, slow networks, and limited device resources. Various profilers and benchmarks built into IDEs, such as The Android Profiler, can help with this.
Security testing: whether the application contains vulnerabilities, memory leaks, or the possibility of unauthorized access. A popular use case is to check whether user data is being transmitted in cleartext.
UX/UI testing – how conveniently the interface and navigation elements are arranged, as well as how the app behaves under unusual conditions: when changing the font size, rotating the screen, or minimizing the app.
Testing localization settings and regional differences – how correctly local settings are displayed and processed: the format for displaying dates, time, currency, numbers, and the interface language.
Testing compatibility with other applications – how the application interacts with other popular applications and services.

There are many methods for testing mobile applications, and each of them plays an important role in the quality assurance process. These methods are usually used in combination, which helps identify a variety of issues that may arise in the application. Using a comprehensive approach to testing helps ensure high performance, security, and ease of use of mobile applications.

Mobile App Testing Tools

There is a wide range of mobile testing tools that allow developers and testers to effectively identify and fix bugs. In this article, we will take a closer look at several popular tools that will help improve the quality of mobile applications.

Emulators and simulators are software solutions that allow you to simulate the operation of various devices. With their help, testers can evaluate how the application functions on tablets and smartphones of various models, taking into account different versions of operating systems, screen sizes, and other parameters. This can significantly reduce the time and costs of testing, avoiding the need for physical equipment. Emulators and simulators are becoming an important tool in the development and testing of mobile applications, providing the opportunity to identify and fix bugs at an early stage.

What is the difference between an emulator and a simulator? Emulators reproduce both the software and hardware components of the device, while simulators focus exclusively on the software part. If your task is to test the application's operation with components such as a camera, microphone, or speaker, it is recommended to use an emulator. Emulators provide a more accurate representation of the device's operation, which helps identify potential problems during the development stage.

Browserstack emulator interface Screenshot: Browserstack / ITech content

DevTools are a set of tools integrated into modern web browsers. They allow developers to analyze mobile web applications, checking how they display on various devices and screen sizes. DevTools also allow you to evaluate page load speed and resource consumption, which is an important aspect for performance optimization. Reports with recommendations for improving the quality of web pages are also available, which helps create more efficient and faster applications.

Using developer tools, you can test the responsive layout of a web application. Screenshot: Skillbox Media

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Chrome DevTools: Key Tools and Useful Features

Chrome DevTools is a powerful set of developer tools built into the Google Chrome browser. It provides many features for debugging, analyzing, and optimizing web applications. One of the main tools is the Element Inspector, which allows you to view and edit HTML and CSS in real time. This is especially useful for testing changes before applying them to your site.

Another important feature is the Console, where you can execute JavaScript code, track errors, and display debugging information. Using the Console helps developers quickly find and fix problems in their code.

The Network Monitor analyzes network requests, which helps optimize page loading and improve site performance. With this tool, you can track resource loading times and identify bottlenecks.

Performance tools provide the ability to test and optimize the speed of your web application. This is especially important for improving user experience and improving site rankings in search engines.

Additionally, Chrome DevTools offers accessibility analysis features, helping developers create more inclusive web applications.

Using Chrome DevTools can significantly improve code quality, optimize websites, and enhance their functionality.

Sniffers are tools that analyze traffic between mobile devices and servers. Mobile applications constantly exchange requests with servers, creating a data stream. Sniffers can be used to intercept and examine this traffic. They can also artificially slow down the internet speed, which helps check whether the application returns the expected error message under certain conditions. Using sniffers is an important aspect of mobile application testing, allowing developers to identify problems and improve the quality of the product.

Sniffers are tools designed to analyze network traffic. Popular sniffers include Charles Proxy, Wireshark, and Fiddler. These applications allow users to intercept and examine data transmitted over the network, which can be useful for debugging applications, analyzing performance, and identifying security issues. Using sniffers helps developers and system administrators more effectively manage network connections and improve software performance.

Common Mistakes in Mobile Testing

Mistakes that frequently occur during mobile app testing can significantly impact their quality and user experience. One common problem is insufficient testing on various devices and operating systems, which can lead to incompatibilities and crashes. It's also common for testers to fail to consider different usage scenarios, including varying network conditions and geolocation.

Ineffective test data management can make it difficult to reproduce bugs, making debugging difficult. Furthermore, insufficient attention to user interface and usability can result in an app that is unusable for users.

Performance issues are also important to consider: slow loading times and high memory consumption can negatively impact user satisfaction.

To achieve high-quality mobile apps, it is necessary to systematically identify and fix these issues during testing. This will help ensure the reliability and usability of the app.

Incorrect interface rendering can significantly impair the user experience. An app can look and function differently on different versions of Android and iOS. This leads to adaptation errors that occur when changing screen orientation, when interface elements overlap or are incorrectly positioned. To avoid such issues, it is important to test on all supported versions of operating systems and take into account the features of different devices. Proper interface adaptation improves user experience and improves overall app performance.

An unattractive and unusable interface is one of the main reasons why users abandon a website or app. A lack of intuitive design and inappropriate behavior of interface elements can significantly degrade the user experience. For example, buttons that are impossible to tap or text that is cut off on small screens create difficulties in interaction. Furthermore, a logo on a loading screen that does not adapt to different devices also negatively impacts brand perception. To improve the interface, it is important to consider user needs and ensure responsive design, which will ultimately lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Application performance issues can manifest themselves in various forms. Users often experience long screen load times, slow touch response, choppy animations, and freezes during certain actions. These issues can significantly degrade the user experience. Furthermore, high battery and CPU consumption are also common issues that require developer attention. Optimizing app performance not only improves functionality but also contributes to increased user satisfaction. Errors that occur during transitions between app states, such as launching, pausing, or closing, can have serious consequences. One common issue is the loss of app data, which can occur, for example, when minimizing the app or receiving an incoming call. Such situations negatively impact the user experience and can lead to user dissatisfaction, which in turn affects the app's ranking in stores. To minimize these errors, it is important to implement reliable state persistence and event handling mechanisms to ensure app stability and the preservation of user data. Connection issues can arise for several reasons, including incorrect processing of data received from the server. This is often due to improperly configured security protocols, such as HTTPS, which can lead to network vulnerabilities. Additionally, network connection errors and other system flaws can negatively impact connection quality. Regularly reviewing server settings and updating protocols is essential to ensure reliability and security. Insufficient data protection poses a serious threat to information security. Insecure authentication methods, such as weak passwords and lack of multifactor authentication, increase the risk of unauthorized access to systems. Data encryption issues, including storing passwords in cleartext and transmitting sensitive information without proper encryption, put personal and corporate data at risk. Ensuring reliable data protection by implementing modern authentication and encryption methods is critical to protecting against cyberthreats. Incorrect data entry processing poses a serious vulnerability for web applications. Failure to validate entered data can lead to a variety of problems, including system errors and the possibility of attacks such as SQL injection or XSS. It is important to ensure that data meets specific conditions, check for required fields, and control formats for emails, dates, and URLs. Robust input validation not only improves security but also enhances the user experience by preventing incorrect data entry.

Text issues can include translation errors, inaccurate localization, and difficulties displaying text in different languages. Common errors include spelling and punctuation errors. Proper localization and high-quality translation are critical to ensuring the clarity and accuracy of content, especially in an international context. Addressing these issues will improve the readability of the text and increase its effectiveness.

Memory leaks, caching issues, and resource release issues are common problems in programming and software development. Memory leaks occur when a program fails to release unused objects, which can lead to a significant increase in memory consumption and decreased system performance. Caching issues occur when data that needs to be updated is not cleared from the cache, which can lead to incorrect information display and a poor user experience. Resource release is also important, as ineffective resource management can cause delays and application crashes. To solve these problems, it is necessary to apply optimized memory management algorithms, use tools for monitoring and analyzing performance, and ensure proper use of the cache. Monitoring and regularly optimizing processes will help avoid memory leaks and improve software performance.

What to remember

In today's conversation, we summarized the key points we discussed. We covered important aspects that will help you better understand the topic. Each of these points is significant for further analysis and practical application. We also highlighted key findings that can be useful for further study and research.

Testing is checking the application for compliance with the requirements set at the beginning of development. It is carried out to ensure that the program is user-friendly and all functions work as intended.
The difficulty of testing mobile applications lies in the wide variety of devices. Each device has its own characteristics, its own manufacturer, its own screen size and resolution. A tester's job is to ensure that an application functions correctly on different types of devices.
There are four main types of mobile applications: native, cross-platform, hybrid, and web applications. Each type has its own complexities, specifics, and set of testing tools.
To check the quality of an application, mobile testers test it on the most popular devices, check how content is displayed on different screens, measure performance using benchmarks, and evaluate the usability of the user interface.
A mobile tester has a variety of tools at their disposal. For example, DevTools are used to check the responsiveness of mobile web applications, and sniffers are used to analyze traffic.

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