A Guide to Mobile App Development Platforms

www.logicsolutions.com ©2014 Logic Solutions, Inc.

Choosing a Mobile Development FrameworkOften a developer has a great idea they can visualize but a gauntlet to run

through before they see it climb up the bestseller list on Google Play or the

App Store. Here’s your bold statement of the day: History will judge this

time period as the golden age of app development.

Now, you’re either scoffing at the audacity of that statement or thinking,

“Yeah, it just might be the golden age.” Think about it. It’s a maturing

market where the possibilities are seemingly endless–there’s money,

opportunity and mainstream appeal. What is great about this field is also

what is daunting. The possibilities aren’t literally endless but they can be

overwhelming in their scope.

Let’s start at square one. Which framework do you use to build the darn

thing? The following six programs aren’t the only dev tools on the market,

but they should give you a basic starting point for your great idea. Just

remember us when you’re making your millions, mmkay?

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PhoneGap/Apache CordovaOne of the most popular mobile development frameworks is PhoneGap.

This free, open-source framework utilizes many easy and common

coding languages, such as HTML, Javascript, and CSS. There are also a lot

of choices for plug-ins. Because of the nature of open-source platforms,

some plug-ins are out-of-date and buggy.

You can, of course, create your own plug-ins, but if you’re using PhoneGap,

you might not have the most experienced programmers in the first place.

And if those programmers don’t have knowledge of mobile-friendly UI

frameworks, the app may run slowly.

Pros: One of the easiest design frameworks.

Possible limitations: UI and function limitations.

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Appcelerator TitaniumWhen using Appcelerator Titanium, your developers will program in

Titanium API using Javascript syntax. UI can only be done through hard

coding, which can often turn into a time-consuming process. Appcelerator

Titanium does, however, use native UI components and generally has

excellent performance overall.

Titanium is free to all, though there are “value-adds” such as Backend-as-

a-Service, code analysis and the like.

Pros: Relatively easy language, UI abstraction, fairly popular.

Possible limitations: Lag time after OS release, complex native code integration.

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Adobe AirAdobe Air’s strength rests in its ability to create incredible graphics for

your app. It has a GUI editor in the IDE. One of the biggest drawbacks

is that the only language Adobe Air utilizes is ActionScript.

Unlike other frameworks Adobe Air allows you to program for Black-

Berry and OSX.

Pros: Powerful tool for graphically pleasing apps on many different platforms. Possible limitations: Uses proprietary language and may not be a good

long-term solution.

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QtIf you plan on bringing your app to many different countries, Qt might

be one of the better options. Qt Linguist enables translation and

internationalization in apps.In Addition, Qt offers solid development

tools and code profiling. It also features a large set of libraries containing

intuitive APIs.

Like many of the other tools on the list, Qt is free.

Pros: Strong development tools, internationalization, provides native look.

Possible limitations: Minimal support, promotes vendor lock-in.

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TelerikTelerik is all about the cloud: you store everything in the cloud, you

write the code in the cloud, you host it in the cloud. The GUI editor also

has drag and drop widgets, and the framework supports KendoUI and

jQuery. Telerik’s biggest issue is that the interface can be buggy. In

addition, interface options are relatively limited compared to other

frameworks on the list.

Telerik costs $40/month/user.

Pros: Easy languages, cloud storage.

Possible limitations: UI and functional limitations.

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XamarinXamarin features a true, native UI for iOS, Android, and Windows. Xamarin

3 also has some of the easiest iOS coding. If you are developing only for

iOS, this framework is a strong choice. However, if you plan on developing

for Android and Windows, the process might turn into a time sink since

you will have to build individually on each platform (even though your app

might have many similar non-native features). Xamarin creates apps

using C#, so it is a great choice for companies that exclusively use

Microsoft products.

Xamarin is also one of the more expensive frameworks on our list. The

limited version is free, but additional features will run you between $300-

$1,900 per platform, per developer, per year.

Pros: Powerful, stable, creates true native apps.Possible limitations: Can be time consuming and costly.

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LANGUAGE

GUI

UI CONTROLS

PLATFORM

PRICING

API DOCUMENTATION

BOTTOM LINE

HTML, Javascript, CSS Titanium API using Javascript syntax

ActionScript QML (CSS/Javascript- like), C++

HTML, Javascript, CSS, Native

C#

No GUI editor provided, but can easily be done using web development tools.

No GUI editor provided. UI editing is through coding only (relatively uneasy)

Has GUI editor in the IDE. Has GUI Editor that emulates look of each platform

Has GUI editor to drag/drop widgets

GUI Editor with native UI

Not native (jQuery UI & jQuery mobile are alternatives)

Native Flash UI Native Native and Web Native

Free Developer version is free. Enterprise and Add-ons available for a fee

Free Free $40/user/month Free for limited, Costs range from $300/platform/dev/yr to $1900

Cordova Documentation Titanium Documentation Flash Builder Documentation Qt Documentation Telerik Icenium Documentation Xamarin Documentation

• Very popular• Easy coding languages• Easy to learn• UI limitations• Functional limits

• Relatively easy language• UI abstraction• Fairly popular,• Lag time after OS release• Complex native code integration

• Powerful tool for graphically pleasing apps on many different platforms• Proprietary language and may not be a good long term solution

• Strong development tools and provides native look• Internalization• Minimal support • Promotes vendor lock-in

• Easy languages• Cloud storage• UI/functional limitations

• Powerful• Stable• Creates true native apps• Good for Microsoft loyalists• Can be time consuming• Costly

AS CSSHTML JSCSSHTML JS JS QML C

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A Guide to Mobile App Development Platforms

©2014 Logic Solutions, Inc.www.logicsolutions.com @LogicSolutions

About Logic SolutionsLogic Solutions builds mobile apps.

We come to work every day with a passion to help clients solve problems

with intelligent and innovative web and mobile solutions. Our experts will

work with you to get a solid understanding of what is needed so that you

have peace of mind knowing that your project will be delivered to your

satisfaction on time, on budget, and on target.

Logic is a full-service custom web and mobile application development firm,

specializing in content management, eCommerce and mobile app

technology. Our services include web and mobile programming, business

analysis, consulting, user interface design, UI/UX analysis, solution

architecture, application integration and deployment. Logic was founded

in 1995, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

www.logicsolutions.com ©2014 Logic Solutions, Inc.

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