Our society can proudly be called a ‘smartphonized’ one. According to statistics, there are more than eight billion owners of smartphones, each one using numerous mobile applications that target practically every sphere of our lives. It is impossible to imagine banking, education, entertainment, sports tracking, etc., without a corresponding application, with readily available information and data, regardless of the time or location.
Applications serve various purposes, functioning as stand-alone solutions, or as part of another web resource. When elaborating on the design and features of the application it is important to hire an Android app developer, whose proficiency will bring your ideas to life in the best form possible.
Mobile application development is generally based on the usage of programming languages for Android- and iOS-based operating systems. Let’s explore the differences between them.
The Best Languages for Android-Based Applications
Android operating system holds more than 70.77% of the market share worldwide, which makes it the first to consider when building an application. There are two most popular languages to use 一 Kotlin and Java, which are used by every Android mobile app development company to build a standard development kit (SDK), emulators, and debuggers. Java and Kotlin are compatible with third-party features and components, which simplifies the process of installing plug-and-play components.
Java
Java is one of the common choices for building an Android-based application. Java language is class-based and object-oriented, and C++ heavily influences its syntax. The reasons to choose Java are the following:
- Since Java is object-oriented, it is suitable for building unique components and modular projects according to the requirements.
- Java is an open-source language; thus, it has affordable rates and a high speed of feature delivery, which makes it time- and cost-efficient.
- Java is a high-level language for programming, which resembles human language, unlike the low-level ones, which mimic machine code.
- Java is a highly flexible language that exists independently of other platforms. Once the code is written, it can operate on various operating systems, including Windows, Android, iOS, etc.
- Java has numerous frameworks and libraries, which make the development, testing, and debugging processes much faster.
Kotlin
Kotlin is the other programming language for Android app development. It is a concise programming language that can easily be integrated with other existing applications. Among the most notable feature are:
- Kotlin, as well as Java, is object-oriented, which helps to create unique components for app functioning.
- Kotlin offers an optimally maintained performance. As it is a statically typed language, it minimizes runtime errors; thus, any mistakes with the code can be fixed before they are compiled.
- Kotlin is highly compatible with Java. Existing Kotlin-written code can be naturally called from Java, and vice versa, without compromising the quality of the code.
Java and Kotlin have strong communities of supporters, as they provide unlimited opportunities and a range of tools for building the application according to the client’s vision.
The Best Languages for iOS-Based Applications
iOS operating system holds a global market share of around 28%, including its derivatives iOS, iPad OS, tvOS, macOS, and watchOS. There are two programming languages used by developers: Objective-C and Swift.
Objective-C
Objective-C is a general-purpose and object-oriented programming language, which is used to build applications with modular structure and reusable codes. The key features:
- It includes a few legacy codes to support the nested coding style.
- It can build unique chat features due to the usage of C program syntax, which is easily comprehensible.
- It has an automated garbage collection, which overlooks the heap memory, identifies non-usable objects, and deletes them.
Swift
Swift is a high-level and general-purpose programming language that compiles with machine code. Its main features:
- Swift is flexible with Cocoa (application framework for MacOS X) and Cocoa Touch (application framework for iPhone and iPad).
- It is one of the fastest and simplest programming languages. It features inference, closures, memory management, stack overflow prevention, and genetics).
- Swift is a statically typed language with native error-handling functionality.
- It features an in-built memory management technique, allowing chat applications with a large storage capacity.
Although both languages are pretty similar according to their core concepts of functioning, Swift code is rather distinct, as it is able to detect software bugs and address null pointers.
The Bottom Line
Mobile app development is one of the most progressing niches nowadays, as apps have become an integral part of our lives with the tendency to have even more extensive influence. The majority of applications are designed for numerous platforms and operating systems, aiming to broaden the network of users. However, there are some creators who want to target either Android or iOS systems. The successful performance of an application depends on its distinctive features, value for a target audience, and quality of the development. Make sure you hire a decent company developer to bring your ideas to life.