Will React Native Take Over Native Mobile App Development?

In the past few decades, technology has taken a kick upstairs, covering every potential sector and is now throwing its light on the very dormant mobile app industry.

As per the statistics, mobile apps are expected to generate $ 188.9 billion in global revenue by 2020, through app stores and in-app advertising.

The users fancy apps that render flawless performance, seamless navigation and which are aesthetically appealing to the eyes. The increasing demand for better and more innovative apps have made it a necessity for the companies to meet the criteria.

What Is React Native

React Native is a framework created by Facebook that lets you develop mobile apps for Android and iOs with a single Javascript codebase.

In 2012, Mark Zuckerberg said,

“The biggest mistake we made as a company was betting too much on HTML5 as opposed to native.”

React Native was announced in February 2015 at Facebook’s React.js conference and was later open-sourced in March 2015.

So lightly speaking, React Native is the native version of the popular JavaScript library – ReactJS. It has gained such massive popularity amongst the developer community that it is now the most starred project of all time on GitHub.

The term ‘React Native’ has been searched more than ‘iOS development’ and ‘Android development,’ as shown on Google Trends. Also due to the extensive range of functionalities that react has to offer, it has been frequently compared to other frameworks in the market.

Why React Native Is The Future Of Mobile App Development

Following are some of the reasons why React Native is considered as the future of mobile apps:

1. Cross-Platform Compatibility

React Native was initially instigated for iOS only. Later, owing to its capabilities and features and its prominence among the masses, Facebook extended its support for the Android as well. Now, the majority of React Native APIs are cross-platform, meaning that developers can React Native to build both iOS and Android apps, simultaneously, through a single codebase.

You can now give a more platform-specific authenticity to your app by embedding native code conveniently. This in return, reduces the app development cost, as well as saves time.

React Native provides Platform modules and Platform specific file extensions, in case you need to be more platform specific; for example, when implying designs which are different for both Android and iOS.

2. Native Functionality

When we talk about app usability, developers cannot ignore the role of scroll accelerations, keyboard behavior, and animations, for defining the popularity of the app.

The UI or user interface developed with the help of React Native comprises of native widgets that perform flawlessly. React Native along with JavaScript makes a complex app run smoothly, outperforming even the real native apps, and thus, it is a prominent solution for developing robust apps.

3. Simple To Learn

Since React Native relies on language fundamental, it is highly readable and easy to learn. It has proved to be a perfect tool for beginners, who are new to JavaScript, as it provides a range of tools like maps and filters.

4. Live Updates

With the adoption of JavaScript, developers have the ability to push the updates directly onto the user’s phones instead of going through the app store update cycle.

This makes users enjoy the updated version of the app immediately without dealing with the problems associated with the older versions. Moreover, the entire process is simple and streamlined.

Microsoft’s live update service CodePush SDK can be used for pushing notifications to your React Native app.

5.Positive Experience

React Native allows new modifications to take place while the app is running, removing the need to start the app. It refreshes the user interface when changes are made to the file.

React Native uses flexbox layout engine to generate layouts for both iOS and Android apps. Therefore, it is easier to learn just one layout engine to develop on both the platforms plus the web. You can also use the Chrome developer tools for sinking React Native with desktop chrome browser.

Conclusion

Is React Native worth it? Will it take over native mobile app development?

The answer is a resounding yes!

Do you have a small team with limited resources and want to make an app for both platforms?
Do you want features like hot reloading and live reloading?
Do your developers have a strong web development background?
Do you want your app to look and behave the same on both platforms?

Go React Native!

Author Bio – Adept in technology and marketing trends, she curates new strategies for brand development and directs both day-to-day product strategy for MobileAppDaily. As a tech enthusiast, she’s constantly involved in editorial, revenue, and audience development teams. Whether it’s about the in-house design or management, she’s always at the top of her game.