Conventional systems and processes of existing social and business economies are riddled with a lot of challenges including cumbersome operations, inaccurate results and sluggish standards.

To avoid errors and control the process, they constantly need intermediaries, causing increase in stress and costs. Blockchain Technology is economical, honest, simplified and more effective solution especially for financial services.

You might have heard of digital currencies like Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency. Blockchain is another innovation that ensures digital transactions are acceptably conducted and maintained.

There are more applications of Blockchain than monetary transactions, and more are being developed. So what exactly is Blockchain and how it will be applied to different industries? Here is the entire gist:

What is Blockchain Technology?



The blockchain is a promising distributed ledger technology that works hand-in-hand with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. It creates organized, safe and transparent financial layers between business network and customers, establishing a unique method of transferring and recording huge data.

The data is kept auditable, decentralized and transparent to ensure organizations using the technology remain democratic, efficient, secure and decentralized.

Though Blockchain is still having work-in-progress appearance, it is expected by global tech community and market experts that it may disrupt numerous industries in the next 5 years.

Let’s take a glance at top 11 Block chain applications likely to shape your future business.

1. Insurance Claims Processing

 

Insurance Claims Processing

 

For insurance companies, claim processing can be a tedious and tiring business that may frustrate the investigator teams since it involves assessment of fraudulent claims, complicated data discovery, fragmented sources, past policy records and much more.

Moreover, manual processing can encourage the room for error. The block chain alleviates traditional workloads and establishes a solid system for transparent processes devoid of risks.

It has encryption qualities that allow insurance firms to claim the ownership of the assets being insured.

2. Honest Trade Processes

Traditional nature of trading and managing assets will require working parties to take certain risks and bear more expenses. This gets more risky when it comes to cross-border transactions and deals.

Because brokers and settlement managers involved in the process keep their own records, inefficiencies and inaccuracies are likely to arise.

The block chain ledger technology uses encryption for records and minimizes errors, simplifying the trade and asset management and eliminating the redundant intermediaries.

3. Blockchain-Powered Cloud Storage

Blockchain-Powered Cloud Storage

Blockchain is likely to disrupt cloud storage in coming years. Since cloud storage services at present are centralized, users are compelled to trust their storage provider who controls their online assets.

Blockchain can tweak the way data is stored and make it all decentralized. Currently, Storj is beta-testing cloud storage that leverages the power of Blockchain to lighten their dependency and enhance security.

With Blockchain, users are allowed to even rent out excessive storage capacity.

4. Cross-Border Payments

The mode of global payments is subject to error, risky and expensive. It is also quite time consuming; you may have to go days until the payment reaches you crossing the border.

Cross-Border Payments

The block chain has innovative solution to offer end-to-end remittance services. It has collaborated with remittance companies such as Abra, Align Commerce and Bitspark blockchain-powered payment services.

Santander has successfully integrated blockchain to a payment app to allow customers to make smooth and faster international payments 24 hours a day.

5. Identity Made Simple, Secure and Seamless

For the purpose of paid advertising, online companies share our identity details to advertisers.

The blockchain helps protect your identity by encrypting it and blocks this by creating a secure and protected data point free from spammers and schemers.

Since you can encrypt only less private information, you need to worry less about your digital security.

Blockchain also makes record-keeping seamless, solid and reliable by encrypting your birth and death details. You can track and manage information securely, which keeps you protected from frauds.

Blockchain gives you a digital form of ID that replaces a range of physical identifications like driver’s license, digital passwords, identity cards, keys, passports, social security ID.

6. Smart Contracts

Blockchain is prepared to generate smart contracts in form of obligatory programmable smart contracts presented in a digitized format.

The smart contract system powered by Blockchain technology relieves you from single central authority and avail legal contracts as variable statements that rely on Bitcoin network as a third party executor to release funds.

Effectively revolutionizing traditional lending system, even people with poor credits can invoke unconventional money lenders to receive loan and put their smart blockchain-encoded property as collateral.

They can extricate themselves from showing the history of credits and work or even processing documents manually.

7. Retail

As of today, your joy of shopping is directly attributed to the store or marketplace where products are hosted, which is more of a centralized retail system.

Blockchain-enabled decentralized retail utilities have unique approach and style as it connects buyers and sellers directly eliminating the need for keeping a host marketplace and their associated charges.

This dynamic system will gain from having smart contract systems in place and security of deals and trustworthy reputation.

8. Blockchain Internet-of-Things (IoT)

Using IoT technology, almost any material object can be controlled and treated as a part of Internet of Things when connected with internet or to similar network of objects.

Such interconnected objects or devices are likely to rule the world in future since according to Gartner analysis there will be over 26 billion IoT connected devices by 2020.

Blockchain-powered IoT devices can be automated securely to function independently and take actions based cognitive knowledge.

For instance, your coffee will be brewed by the machine at your suitable time and your oven will automatically cook Turkey for Thanksgiving.

This idea can be adopted by governments for building smart cities on a larger scale and improve our general living.

9. Secure & Sophisticated Healthcare

Your personal health information and updates can be encoded and stored on Blockchain system using a private digital key. You can keep it accessible to specified individuals.

Similarly, healthcare research can be conducted securely and confidential data can be stored on Blockchain.

Apart from this, surgery receipts could also be stored on blockchain and sent automatically to insurers for further claim approval process.

Blockchain ledger can help with supervising drugs, regulation compliance, healthcare supplies and lab test results, enabling secure personal healthcare management.

10. Blockchain Government

Electronic voting system can be manipulated by clever hackers and raise the questions of integrity and security. Blockchain ledger can prevent this incident and act as a barrier to such vulnerabilities with its encrypting capability.

With blockchain embedded in the voting system, individuals could confirm that their votes were successfully transmitted and counted and can nothing is tempered with during the process.

Blockchain Government

The blockchain approach for electoral voting maintains anonymity of voters through encryption while also saving money for government.

The real-time example of blockchain election process is Liberal Alliance, a political party in Denmark, who was the first to implement blockchain for voting in 2014 – which was the one of the greatest triumph for the technology.

11. Energy Management

Energy marker is going through a tremendous shift when it comes to decentralizing the management and distribution of energy. In a traditional setting, energy producers and users rely on public grid to buy or sell energy.

To transform the centralized energy market, blockchain-powered microgrids can be leveraged to implement peer-to-peer solution for trading energy.

LO3 Energy has developed a system in association with Siemens that allows trading of solar energy locally in peer-to-peer fashion, with its first 50 physical units already tested in Brooklyn.

The project has smart meters for tracking energy production and consumption and smart contracts for transactions.

TransactiveGrid is another start-up in this industry that uses Ethereum to allow customers to trade energy with each other.

Conclusion

For blockchain to work and function as a powerful solution, it is essential that there is a solid agreement from node-to-node network to comply with ethical standards.

Currently, many of these blockchain applications are still in developing phase and will be applied to society and economy experimentally in next couple of years.

The bottom line is that Blockchain is growing fierce and ferocious in its ability to transform businesses, establish fair trading systems, decentralize store and democratize social and economic system.

Apparently, Android is one of the popular and preferred operating systems for people across the globe. Still, there are other big players in the market like iOS, and Android is nowhere near to becoming the only mobile operating system. So, if you want to reach a wider audience then you certainly have to make your mobile app available on other platforms as well.

Now, porting your Android mobile application to iOS takes a lot of time and resources. But what if you can reduce your mobile app development time by building a single application which can seamlessly run across platforms. How wonderful would that be, isn’t?

This is where Google Flutter comes into the picture. A user interface toolkit which claims to do the exact same thing, by providing you a way to build UIs for Android and iOS from just one codebase.

By the time you finish reading this post, you will know what Google Flutter is, its features, and how you can use it to your benefit.

The Core Features of Google Flutter

  • To start with, the earlier version of Flutter only supported Android platform and was known as the Sky. But its latest version will be of a great help to both Android and iOS mobile app developers.
  • The new version of Flutter has an impeccable feature and that is Hot Reload. Using this feature, mobile app developers can easily get an access to a comprehensive range of widgets along with working on the powerful user interface.
  • With the help of Flutter, the app developers will be able to integrate flutter into their mobile applications on WebView component as this will make it simpler for your users to see the web content within the app. In addition, navigating and stabilizing the application becomes much easier.
  • Google Flutter now include support for, formatting the images, the inline videos, etc. thus, making apps more fun and better than before.
  • With an added feature in Flutter, app developers can now localize their applications as well as use it for international purpose.
  • Google Flutter will now support the latest versions of Apple operating system ie., iOS 11 and iPhone X.

Why Should You use Google Flutter?

Unlike Android’s other versions which are based on Kotlin and Java, in order to use Google Flutter, you will have to learn Dart. Of course, the thought of learning a new programming language itself could be off-putting but there are some driving reasons for why you should give it a try.

Cross-Platform:

Google Flutter will help you in creating a single user interface to run on both iOS and Android by utilizing the same framework, libraries, and renderer. To make sure your app runs effortlessly on both the platforms, Flutter offers widgets designed according to Material Design (Android) and Cupertino (iOS) specifications.

Hot Reload:

It is normal for app developers to work on the specific app’s code when the app is running on an Android-powered smart phone to test the changes as you make them. But it takes a really long time for the Android Studio to publish each and every change to the running mobile app. So to help you in being more effective and productive, the new “Hot reload” feature of Google Flutter can easily integrate the updated source code into the Dart Virtual Machine so that app developers can instantly see the changes.

Compatible With Other Programming Languages:

Without having to rewrite the complete current app, Google Flutter seamlessly integrates with Java on Android and Swift and Objective-C on iOS.

Makes The App Development Faster and Better

Since Google Flutter will now be supporting both Android and iOS, it will make the cross-platform mobile app development easier for app developers. Regardless of the platform you choose, you can now have an app that runs effortlessly on both operating systems.

The reason for considering it for developing native application platforms is because it allows you to customize widgets and design an engaging and rich native interface. Without having to use WebView, you can easily draw widgets using Flutter’s extremely rendering engine.

Eye-Catching User Interface

An eye-catching and attractive user interface has always been an important part of the mobile app development. Now, by using Flutter, you can certainly anticipate getting a natural and breathtaking design for your mobile applications. With Material Design (Android) and Cupertino (iOS), developers can build highly responsive applications.

Accessible Native Features and SDKs

The Flutter makes the app development simpler and better via native codes, 3rd-party integrations, and platform APIs. In addition, you can get your hands on native features and SDKs on Android and iOS.

The Functional and Reactive Framework

In order to build creative UI designs, Flutter has an effective tool in the form of platform layouts. Not just that, app developers can also get extremely flexible APIs to use all their creativity to design in 2D and other animations. The functional and reactive framework lets app developers integrate their creativity and efficiency rightfully. Just like Java and Swift, the Dart programming language also offers benefits such as supporting a rich library.

Will Google Flutter Replace Java?

Google Flutter is very much native to iOS and Android, and its design language is just like Java. App developers cannot create the user interface based on templating language because there is none. It makes it extremely simpler to develop high-end applications.

But the intention of Google behind launching Flutter is certainly not to replace the current Android frameworks instead to make it much easier for app developers to build cross-platform, high-end mobile applications. The main purpose of the Google Flutter is to let app developers develop a platform that allows them to share minimum codebase between platforms.

Conclusion

Google has launched Flutter to make the app development process easier. So do the lives of app developers. The first and foremost purpose of this effective tool is to provide a native user interface look with native widgets and buttons.

Currently, this giant tech company is still working on an open-source mobile operating system, Fuchsia, which is written in Flutter. We will have to wait and watch whether it surpasses React native or not. Nonetheless, it can be said that Google has indeed launched a useful software development tool that will let developers create responsive and efficient user interfaces.

Now is the age of “look-alike” apps that are aptly named Progressive Web Apps (PWA). A PWA is driven by modern web features, enabling business users to experience an app-like visibility and functionality. You have a choice to either deploy it as a Progressive Web Apps or a Native app so that your business can make the most of both the channels of interface.

These Progressive Web Apps can be deployed to servers which are indexed by search engines and are accessible via URLs. Not calling for any complex installation, these apps can handhold businesses in more ways than one.

Before we look into the advantages of PWAs, let us now delve deep into what makes these apps stand out from others which offer the regular web-based experiences.

Features of PWAs

  • The Concept of Progressiveness

Speaking of the word “progressive” that comes with these modern apps, this name makes it possible for every user to derive the best out of PWAs irrespective of the choice of browser.

It is though their core principle of progressive enhancement that make these apps a class above the rest. They can seamlessly fit into any device including mobiles, tablets or even a desktop.

  • Ease of Operation

Once you enter a website that can be used as a PWA, you will be asked to pin the PWA to your mobile phone screen.

This feature will help you retain the apps that you find are beneficial to you on the home screen of your mobile. This will not only save the app but will also allow you to start using it whenever you want.

  • The Offline Support

As with normal websites which run on internet connectivity at all times, this is not the case with PWAs. It uses cache memory that enable you stay connected via the offline mode.

This means that, all PWAs are independent of net connectivity, allowing you to either work offline or on slow-speed networks.

  • The Luxury of Staying Abreast With New Content

Another striking feature of PWAs is linked to their ability to work in the background. These apps, through push notifications help you stay abreast with the latest content.

This way, you can benefit through the app which will not only synch your data but will also send it to the user despite being inactive.

  • The Safety Feature

All these PWAs come with the HTPPS protocol. That means, these apps are safe, always securing your content from misuse or tampering.

After understanding the benefits of PWAs, now is the time to unveil the advantages of PWAs to businesses.

1. Ease of Implementation

If you are looking to understand everything that makes PWAs an attractive solution to businesses, the first amongst them is their ease of implementation.

All the PWAs come with JavaScript as the standard front-end language. PWAs hence do not call for any change in the scripting language. Simply apply the expertise of your in-house or outsourced JavaScript developers and you are all covered.

To sum it all, you can ensure a hassle-free implementation of your PWA without any additional resources, manpower or technologies.

2. Benefits to Users With Regard to Simplified Implementation of PWAs

After discussing the ease to implement a PWA from an operational perspective, let us now move on to the advantages your customers will enjoy.

PWAs do not need you to download and install them from either the App Store or Windows Store. On the other hand, as soon as you start using a PWA, you will be prompted to pin the app to your smartphone’s home screen.

Read also : How To Create an App For Your Small Business

Once this is done, you will be able to use it without any hassles through the PWA icon. This procedure not only enables your app to come live in a jiffy but will also spare you the review process that comes with either a Play Store or an App Store.

3. It’s All About Speed Loading

PWAs load faster even while working offline. Statistics state that about 53% of mobile users abandon a site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load. This is a serious problem that can affect businesses and their bottom-line.

Through PWAs, you can safeguard your online business presence. Your customers can simply navigate to the site on either a Chrome or Safari browser and get going. Thus, PWAs come as awesome tools for marketers to promote their products and services to the world of shoppers and clients.

4. Revenue Conversions

PWAs guarantee a reliable and effective online mobile shopping or transactional experience. This assurance, which is not linked to location, time or network availability constraints will help you rake in rewards.

When your business starts addressing the needs of your target audience, you will be able to provide the luxury of mobility to the world at large with a commitment to offer smooth and quick responses. These responses come in the form of push notifications which will help your customers to get informed about reminders and marketing offers.

5. The Cross-Platform Functionality

As with regular websites, you will be able to make use of PWAs on multiple platforms. As you already know that iOS does not support important Application Program Interfaces (APIs), you have a solution coming in the form of Adobe PhoneGap or Apache Cordova.

It is through this software plug-in that you can empower your PWA to interact with different platforms alongside program a host of graphical user interface (GUI) components.

6. Experience the Supremacy of Google

Here is another huge advantage in favor of PWAs. The fact that these apps are backed by one of the largest global software companies named Google, you can surely imagine what’s in store for these apps.

Backed by a strong intent from Google to churn out many websites offering “app-like” experiences to end users, the time is ripe for PWAs to be tagged as the perfect companions to native mobile apps.

7. The Native Apps v/s PWAs

Native apps which are developed for a particular service or platform are best suited to engage brand loyalists. Allowing loyal customers to install your app, you can ensure that you gain visibility. On the flip side, Progressive Web Apps can be used to reach out to new users.

Once they start interacting with your PWA, there will come a time when they can eventually download your native app. That means, you don’t have to replace native apps with PWAs but can enable both of them to work hand-in-hand.

The fact that PWAs offer the same engaging and responsive feel matching a native app stands in favor of the “best of both the worlds” maxim. Your customers will not only find your PWA interactive and engaging but will also enjoy better mobile browsing experience.

8. Brand Visibility Enhanced Through Push Notifications

User-engagement is a promising feature for any online business to thrive. PWAs come with an in-built ability to send real-time alerts to your customers as part of your user-engagement strategy.

It is through push notifications that your business will stand to gain even when the app is not running. Through this mobile app feature, you will be able to attract the attention of users towards your brand.

9. Low on Data Usage

Another fine detail that makes PWAs a star attraction to businesses is linked to data usage. All thanks to the way in which PWAs are built, they do not call for high data usage once it is installed. Repeat visitors to the app can get away with decreased loads.

Closing Thoughts

Keeping in mind all the above-explained advantages of PWAs to your app development business, you will be poised to create a strong mobile presence in more ways than you can imagine.

The keywords are increased conversion, interaction rate and customer engagement along with decreased loading times and data usage. These are all the star attractions of PWAs that can be employed by businesses to scale new heights.

Within a short time span, AI has already become one of most discussed technology among science and tech-based organizations and more companies are showing an interest in Artificial Intelligence than ever before. Google’s prime invest of $400 billion itself is a known factor that AI apps are becoming a mainstream. Having a personal assistant to do your entire task brings more users to try this, which in turn increases the potential of apps.

And now with Google I/O annual developers’ conference event, the company has brought Google AI to spotlight with many additional features that could make a great impact in the world of mobile app technology.

In this article let’s check out how the tech giant is going to use AI on its products:

1) Google Duplex:

Google Duplex

This is one of the main features that stole the show at the 2018 Google I/O, the Google Duplex which is company’s new experimental technology. The highlighted advantage of this feature is that it lets AI-powered bots to make a call for your personal needs. I know it sounds quite crazy but this is now real


Google Duplex is a neural network that can be trained for highly specialized tasks which use Google’s automatic speech recognition technology. It enables the AI to relieve you from tiring tasks, like making a restaurant reservation or a hair salon appointment. And the best part is that the person talking would have no idea they are talking to a machine, because it’s that real.

For example, the AI would suggest the name of the salon or the timing you wish to book an appointment or make an online booking service using a phone call. Google Assistant will also check the working hours, and make the booking according to the time you want to. Duplex is designed to respond in a natural manner and adapt to responses in real time and the feature will be rolling out in the coming weeks in the US.

2) Google Maps makes Navigation Easier:

Navigation

To make navigation easier, Google has introduced Visual Guidance and Visual Positioning System in Google Maps Navigation. Google aims at navigating Street view and Maps by combining AI with camera features. Within this, you can use your camera while walking through streets/roads and follow the animation that is been displayed on the screen. The exact reflection of your camera is shown on the screen with the complete route navigation map of to which direction you are approaching.

To make this feature more amazing and more fun to use, Google has also incorporated a guide companion in the form of an animated character- ‘a fox’. Your guide companion will run in front of you on the screen towards the direction you need to go.

Along with these features, the Explore tab on Map has also been re-designed to show recommendation based on the area the user search. Any options for dining, events and other activities available around your area will be displayed. Each result displayed, will be according to the reviews given by local experts, trusted publishers and Google’s Algorithm.

3) Google sets “Pretty Please” feature for Kids:

Pretty Please

No more yelling at your Google Assistant or home smart speaker because Google has set this new feature on request from many parents & families. The main aim of this feature is to teach children to speak polite language when interacting with the Assistant and in return, the AI will say thanks to kids.

While using this feature, the voice assistant will respond to children with some positive reinforcement at the same time also performs the requested task.

4) New AI-powered Feature Can Write Emails for You:

Google Photos Gets Exciting New Features

Google has revealed a new feature that will power a new Gmail technology for users that can write and send emails on behalf of yours. An add-on feature named Smart Compose lets you quickly create or compose emails by suggesting words or phrases that you might use, just like an advanced version of auto-correct. This feature not only saves time but also reduces grammatical and spelling mistakes.

5) Google Photos Gets Exciting New Features:

At the Google conference, new features have been incorporated that budding smart phone photographers would be desperate to use. Photo sharing is made easy and the facial recognition feature lets grouping of same people photos, creating their albums and also quick sharing.

Other feature for photos that can suggest photo editing improvements like contrast, brightness, colorization and selective desaturation. AI algorithms also have the ability to suggest who to share pictures with based on faces on the photo.

6) A Revamp of Google News Features:

Revamp of Google News Features

Google News will have the feature Google Material Theme based on AI that make accessing much faster and easier for users. From now, the relevant top 5 stories will be listed first according to the user preferences.

The most interesting feature in this section is ‘Full Coverage’ which lines up the various perspective of news based on data from opinions, related tweets, analyses and much more. According to Google, this is going to be an unbiased way to approach complex stories, for getting the full scope of the story relying on AI.

Conclusion:

From all these features, its certainly understood that Google has completely adapted to the changing world and technology in meaningful and productive ways which can earn tangible benefits to their users.  Google is already the biggest search engine that brings in any information at your fingertips in no time. With incorporating AI, Google has proved that it can go a long way with technology to achieve remarkable goals in future as well.

The mobile application development has seen such a great paradigm shift that we have a user interface that is optimized for fingers and not for mouse cursors, not anymore.

In addition to that, there are bandwidth restrictions that most of the smart devices have and that is why mobile app developers ought to stay ahead in this challenging world and come up with some of the finest solutions in the form of excellent functional mobile applications.

Mobile platforms such as Android, Windows, and iOS use different programming languages. For example, an Android mobile apps is coded using Java language, the iOS mobile application is coded using Objective-C, and a Windows mobile application is coded using .NET.

Just like on web application, does JavaScript have a similar effect on mobile application development as well? Nevertheless, with sound knowledge of JavaScript, CSS, and HTML, mobile application developers can develop some of the best apps. Today, in this post we will discuss some of the best JavaScript frameworks for mobile apps development.

1. jQuery Mobile

With too many smartphones available in the market, it is essential to take care while developing a mobile application that not only can load faster but also customized and functional across various platforms.

When compared to other frameworks, jQuery Mobile comes number one in the list when you have to develop an app that loads faster.

  • Create cross-platform applications faster.
  • Cost-affordable hybrid mobile app development.
  • HTML5 and CSS3 for a better touch-optimized UI.
  • Lightweight Framework for faster loading.
  • Ajax-powered navigation with animated page transitions.
  • Uniform user interface for all platforms and devices.

2. PhoneGap

Otherwise known as Apache Cordova, PhoneGap is a widely utilized framework, especially for cross-platform mobile application development.

It is highly recommended for projects that have budget issues. just by utilising a single codebase, multiple versions of the application can be created by PhoneGap.

  • Single code base for multiple platforms (iOS, Android, and Windows).
  • Simple rapid testing and deployment of the application.
  • Tapping into device’s hardware such as camera and geolocation will be easy.
  • No need for additional knowledge of development.
  • Needs less time and efforts.

3. Mobile Angular UI

An HTML5 framework, Mobile Angular UI utilizes Bootstrap 3 and AngularJS to develop highly interactive mobile applications.

If you are a huge fan of angular, then this is the right Framework for you. not only does it provide important mobile components such as overlays, sidebars, and switches But also developers can bring the website two smartphones in the form of an application.

  • Faster and simpler data binding.
  • Modifications will be instantly displayed in the model
  • Minimizes burden from server CPUs by supporting caching and other processes.
  • Faster application prototyping.

4. Sencha Touch

By adding a variety of features, Sencha Touch lets customization exactly how users will interact with the application as per their wish.

Sencha Touch is one of the popular HTML based frameworks that Is used to create applications that work amazingly on all platforms without having to change the code for every operating system.

  • Provides a high-level responsiveness for applications.
  • It is compatible with all the latest versions of Android, iOS, and BlackBerry.
  • Loads the application as fast as possible.
  • Creating a native application would be easy.

5. Titanium

One of the old frameworks for hybrid mobile application development, Titanium Provides a simple and transparent access to most of the native functionalities.

Using web technologies like JavaScript and CSS, developers can seamlessly develop native applications along with hybrid and web apps.

  • Can easily develop applications compatible with Android, iOS, etc.
  • Functional entities let you create high-performance applications.
  • Build quick prototypes as it comes with an integrated environment.
  • Extremely cost-affordable open-source option
  • Simplified coding structure as it supports powerful web technologies.

6. Meteor

A free and open-source platform, Meteor is utilized for building modern mobile apps. Not only does this JavaScript framework let rapid prototyping and gives cross-platform code but also gives you the control over your application.

  • Lets you update JavaScript code without any development skills.
  • Gives mobile to server data communication and synchronization functions.
  • Known for Speed and quick deployment.
  • Eliminates bugs that most of the new applications seem to have.
  • Offers great flexibility across platforms and devices.
  • External libraries and several plugins can be utilized.

7. Ionic

Ionic is a commonly used open-source framework to build hybrid mobile applications. This framework provides useful tools and services which developers can utilize for creating native and progressive web application seamlessly. With Ionic, developers need fewer efforts and also can minimize maintenance expenses.

  • Code works across platforms and devices.
  • Single programming language for all operating systems.
  • Variety of Cordova plugins available.
  • Utilization of well-known web technologies.
  • Application testing is easier.

Read also : Java vs Kotlin: What is Better For Android App Development?

8. React Native

If you are a big fan of native mobile apps then obviously one of the few options you will be left with is React Native. As it is an Open source framework, react native app developers in reprocessing the same code on the web and mobile.

  • Developers can seamlessly copy half the code to build apps on other platforms.
  • With native components, users can get native app experience.
  • Revamping complete code is not required.
  • Developers can easily run the code everywhere by putting fewer efforts.

9. NativeScript

A creative hybrid application development framework, NativeScript is extremely useful in building native cross-platform applications with super performance.

In addition, NativeScript allows developers to reutilize skills from Angular, JavaScript, and TypeScript. Its holistic approach lets developers write once and run it everywhere.

  • Single code base and then develop it for Android or iOS.
  • Gives faster access to native libraries.
  • Team Native Script welcomes feature requests to enhance.
  • Developers can learn Native Script using JavaScript, XMS, and CSS.

10. Backbone JS

An old JavaScript mobile app framework, Backbone JS is highly lightweight and capable of handling current requests. It is extremely helpful when developing the one-page application.

Also, the developer can effortlessly keep an application logistics separated from user interface so that both can be easily modified and updated whenever needed.

  • Due to its lightweight, downloading speed would be faster
  • Framework includes loads and loads of small libraries which are suitable for specialized needs.
  • The models in Backbone JS can be simply tied to the back-end.

Read also : How much does it Cost to Create an App like Instagram?

11. Ember JS

Designed to develop complex hybrid mobile applications, Ember JS lets developers utilize future JavaScript standards and transpile them for utilization in browsers for later use. It is an excellent option for all the writing web applications.

  • Two-way binding method makes it easy
  • High-performance applications
  • It has its own debugging tool
  • Faster development with Ember CLI

Closing Thoughts:

Other than the above-mentioned frameworks, the mobile application development market is flooded with hundred other creative JavaScript frameworks and choosing the right JavaScript framework should be never about the number of innovative features it can provide.

Instead, it should be about the real functionalities of the framework and how those can be applied within the application. Now, all the best with your final choice.

Planning to build a mobile presence for your company to reach a greater audience? Confused between choosing a mobile app development and mobile website development? Then, let me tell you something. For people who think there isn’t much difference between these two, actually, there’s a lot of difference. Here, we are talking about two connected and important different aspects of a company’s presence.

Today, in this post, we are not going to tell you which one is better. Instead, we will make you understand the huge difference between these two and the final decision will be yours as to which one you want for your business.

Before going further into this discussion, you should understand that these two elements serve slightly different purposes. Now, let’s get started.

What is the difference between a mobile app and mobile website?

Before you even start counting the advantages of one over the other, first let’s understand the important differences between a mobile app and mobile website. iOS and Android users (Includes smartphone and tablet users) can access both mobile apps and mobile websites.

Mobile websites are very much similar to normal websites which consist of browser-based HTML pages which are connected together and can be check with an internet connection. The basic and major difference between a normal website and a mobile website is that the latter one is developed especially for smartphone users. Increasingly, companies are now turning to responsive web designs as not only is a number of smartphone users greater than traditional desktop users but also they can scale to any sized device right from basic PC to all popular smartphones and tablets.

Just like any normal website, a mobile website too shows everything (Content, pictures, etc.) Users can also get to access certain mobile-specific features like click-to-call or even geographic based mappings.

Mobile apps, on the other side, are applications that are installed on our smartphones. Of course, there are apps which work on only online mode and offline mode such as games, image editing apps, etc. are built in such a way so that users do not have worry about having a good internet connection.

Which is better- A mobile app or mobile website?

Now the biggest question is that which is one is better. Honestly, that actually depends on your company/business goals. So you are the deciding factor here. Let’s say you are building a game then probably a mobile app would serve your purpose in a better way. But if your aim is to provide your users a smartphone-friendly content to a greater and broader audience then a mobile website would be the best option. However, in some scenarios, you may want to have both a mobile website and application but there are fewer people/companies who would want to develop an application without already having a mobile website for their business.

Nevertheless, if you have a specific goal which cannot be achieved through a website then you should consider building a mobile app first. Otherwise, a mobile website should serve your purpose of reaching to a greater audience.

Benefits of a Mobile Website vs Mobile App:

By the year 2019, India’s smartphones users number is predicted to reach 1.1 billion and China’s to 1.5 billion.

Benefits of a Mobile Website vs Mobile App:

If your goal is to increase customer base or even remotely close to public communication, then having a mobile website built first always makes sense in your mobile outreach approach. This is due to the fact that mobile website has more number of advantages/benefits over mobile apps. Let’s see how.

1) Compatibility

When compared to mobile applications, mobile websites are greatly compatible with almost all smart devices. No matter what kind of smartphone your customer is having, a mobile website just works fine on all smartphones.  Whereas a mobile app needs a different version (iOS and Android) to be built for each kind of device.

2) Upgradability

Without much effort and time, mobile websites can be seamlessly updated. They offer great flexibility when it comes to updating content. Whether it is color or design, all you need to do is just to click on the edit button and the changes are instantly updated. On the other hand, updating content in an application needs the updates pushed to the customers as well. And then should be installed so that the content can be updated for every type of device.

3) Reachability

More than mobile apps, mobile websites can deliver your get your message to a wider audience as they are accessible across platforms, search engines, and devices.

4) Shareability

Mobile websites can be shared easily. All users have to do is share the link within an email, SMS, or to even post on social media networking platforms. Businesses, with much ease, can direct their customers to a mobile website from a portal or even blog page. A mobile application cannot be shared in the same way.

5) Time and cost

Cost and time for developing a mobile website consume less as to a mobile app. Mobile websites, for sure, take less time and cost-effective than building an application and especially if you are trying to build a native mobile app.

Now, what about an app?

Despite the obvious advantages a mobile website has, applications are increasingly becoming companies’ choice and just like a mobile website, a mobile app has got its own benefits.

1. Gaming

For games, mobile apps engage and interact with users in the best way possible.

2. Frequent usage

If your targeted audiences use your mobile application on a frequent note then nothing does the job better than an app.

3. Works offline mode

If your app doesn’t need an internet connection to work or interact with your users then without any second thought you can go for it.

4. Native functionality 

Do you need to access your user’s camera, contacts, or anything related to their smartphone then an application will do a better job much more effectively.

At the end of the day, whether it is a mobile website or an app, everybody wants to get an optimal return on their investment. So the choice will be the one that costs less and gives you moderate ROI. Also, even if you are getting a mobile app done at a cheaper price, don’t make the most common mistake of making your app into the clone of your website. Your mobile app should solve a purpose. So choose features and functions that mirror the objective of your business.

Final thoughts

Of course, there is no doubt that the usage of a smartphone is only to increase, the common question “Mobile app vs. website” will remain as a question for companies who are seeking to build a mobile presence for their business. Nevertheless, if your business objective is marketing-driven or to deliver good content and build a wider mobile presence which can effortlessly maintain, and easily found on search engines then the mobile website would be the right solution for you.

On the other side, if your goal is to offer and enhance a better user experience which would be similar to a gaming app then a mobile application would be the logical choice. However, there is no such rule that says you can have either mobile app or mobile website.  So in the end, it’s all about requirements of your business and your users.

Just like the users anticipated in 2017, the iPhone X has indeed received a great attention for its new 3D sensing technology. On the other hand, the vendors of Android mobile phones is also likely to follow the same footsteps of Apple, intending to increase the demand for vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL), an important element of 3D sensing technology. Hence, VCSEL manufacturers will start laying the basic foundation in this domain.

What is 3D Sensing Technology?

In the recent IT developments, 3D sensing technology is one of the biggest achievements. Various electronic devices are now aiming to integrate this technology to the upward trajectory in its demand.

When it comes to mobile phones, and just as expected, 3D sensing technology is bringing a major transformation with its features and functionalities.

One of the most common instances of 3D sensing would be how it will be integrated into mobile phones via gesture recognition into the user interface.

Now this kind of addition will definitely result in customers being able to run their devices via touch motion and facial recognition.

Even though 3D sensing is most commonly used in smartphones and tablets, this innovative technology has various applications which include robots and drones.

In addition to that, 3D sensing is also utilized to let users have better connectivity between the real world and the artificial intelligence.

How does 3D Sensing Work?

Understanding how 3D sensing works is not as simple as it sounds as it is one of the most greater scientific achievements and also complex which left various people left perplexed. Nevertheless, this can be better explained when the 3D sensing is used in the most common things around us.

For instance, Nintendo gaming is entirely based on 3D technology where the player would be able to enjoy action games via mere gesture without having to tap keys on devices. Wondering how that is possible? Infra red light is the reason behind that.

The process that makes it easier is when an infra red light passes through and ocular component which will spread the light into a pre-organised way which is similar to the idea of prism light divergence.

By interacting with the infra red light, that device will get the required data across the room by identifying the things off of which the light had reflected.

This 3D sensing will enable players to control the automated home entertainment system which has the 3D technology without having to use remote control.

What’s ahead for 3d Sensing Technology?

Regardless of whether 3D detecting is just an overnight sensation or conceivably a future standard element in cell phones may well rely upon Android telephones. Market responses and accessibility of 3D detecting modules will be basic components for Android telephones in choosing whether to receive such innovation.

At this stage, the creator trusts that it is still yet too soon to choose if facial acknowledgement would turn into a standard element. On the off chance that clients don’t give positive criticism, it is improbable that the Android camp would stick to this same pattern.

Rather, they could center around upgrading unique finger impression acknowledgement innovation, (for example, under-show arrangements) keeping in mind the end goal to increase first-mover advantage.

Also, the utilizations of 3D detecting module are not constrained to confront acknowledgment just, and numerous conceivable outcomes stay to be investigated with such innovation.

Thus, 3D detecting and unique finger impression acknowledgment are not fundamentally unrelated, which could be helpful to the long haul advancement of 3D detecting.

Apart from iPhone X, the number of Android devices and mobile app development brands which are offering such 3D technology a very limited currently.

Also, there still some stuff technique dost in the process of assembling 3D sensing modules and even Apple also to considerable amount of time in the assembling process.

Therefore, it will take another good 2 to 5 years for Android brands to start producing devices that are capable of providing touch motion and facial recognition.

From Apple to Samsung to Sony, every single electronic Goliath of the world is consolidating 3D technology to their devices and other smart products to give the most one of a kind customer experience.

A popular 3D imaging sensor producing organization plans to dispatch 3D sensors that can infiltrate through the dividers. This element could be a major leap forward for home security frameworks as families would have the capacity to screen diverse rooms of the home from even a remote place.

The present day mobile apps are garnering a lot of importance when they are becoming the prime instruments to pep up the sales of your products and services. Mobile apps allow you to effectively market your offerings to your target audience; the basic necessity of a small or a large business.

Having said this, it is a common phenomenon to commit mistakes when you are hiring mobile app developers to support your app project.

For all those enterprises who are looking to hire a team of mobile app developers, here are some Don’ts that need to be kept in mind so that you can effortlessly complete your mobile app project.

1. By-Passing the Verification of Credentials

The first and most damaging mistake committed by enterprises while hiring a mobile app development team is to avoid the task of verifying its credentials. In order to get a clear picture of their past works, you should probe into the details concerning how many clients benefited from this team. You can also check out the number of apps the members developed.

2. A Prejudice for Local Mobile App Developers

Enterprises looking to offer their mobile apps to the world at large should avoid having a bias towards local mobile app developers. Not with standing the fact that local developers might seem very tempting because of their proximity, you should keep your options open for remote app developers as well. Blindly falling back on local mobile app developers can hence be damaging to your app which can be bettered by signing up with a team which is located thousands of miles away.

3. Avoiding A Technical Discussion with Developers

Another grave mistake that is committed by companies planning to launch their mobile apps is to sign the dotted line without making an effort to interview the developers. Only when you engage in a technical discussion with the mobile app development team will you be in a position to assess their strengths and weaknesses.

4. Haste Makes Waste

You must have not only heard this famous maxim that haste makes waste, but also experienced it in your real life. Enterprises big or small should be mindful of the fact that mobile app development is a complicated process. Effective apps can be developed when there is a coordination between a designer, a developer and a tester. It goes without saying that all these concerned people should be on the same page when it comes to what is expected from the mobile app.

5. Skewed Towards Costing

No doubt, costing is an important factor that demands a close look when teaming up with an external mobile app development company. However, you should not compromise on the skills of the team when it tempts you with a low development price. Hiring a good mobile app developer is hence a tricky decision that needs to be taken carefully, weighing the skills over the costing constraints.

A cheap app can never be the best. Hence, you should hire a mobile app developer who promises you an effective app that supports your business objective.

6. Lack of Experience in Your Niche

Another common blunder committed by businesses scouting for an external mobile app development team is to hire a team which has no prior experience in your industry. Developers who lack knowledge about your industry will fail to deliver an app that meets the needs of your target audience. Hence, it will be an intelligent move to hire a mobile app developer who is well-versed with the trends in your industry, supported by an extensive knowledge about what features click and what are redundant. Looking into these details will pay you off in more ways than you can imagine.

7. Unprepared For The Road Ahead

Most of the businesses wear blinders which restrict them to stay abreast with the changing needs of end users. Mobile app development calls for continuous updates along with big fixing. These are all the essential sections of the product life cycle that need to be followed at any cost. Any deviation from these rules will seal the future of your app. It is only when you operate with a sense of forethought that you will be able to plan ahead and ensure that your mobile app is prepared for the long haul.

8. Uninformed About Cross Platform Functionalities

Another pointer that should be kept in mind is to avoid all those development agencies that lack cross platform skills. Now is the age of mobile apps compatible with Android and iOS platforms. There will come a time when you need to churn out mobile apps that can be launched on platforms like Blackberry and Windows. In line with this evolving technological trend, it pays for you to sign up with a mobile app development team that ranks high with cross platform app development skills.

9. The Jack of All Trades V/s A Standalone Freelancer

By now, you have understood all the factors necessary to launch a successful mobile app. The development process calls for the individual skills of many professionals who are well-versed in their respective domains. In this regard, you should not be tempted to sign up with a standalone freelancer even if he demonstrates expertise in various technologies.

A development team which thrives with the intelligence of a business analyst, a UX designer, a front-end or UI Developer, a tester along with a strong maintenance team can become your best choice. Thus it makes sense to hire a professional team as against a freelancer who has extensive knowledge about multiple platforms.

10. Repeating the Same Blunders

Learning from a mistake is the stepping stone to progress. You must have made a wrong choice in the past with a bad selection of a mobile app development team. Now is the time to take the support of a professional team which offers you a satisfactory end product. Never should you repeat the same mistakes in teaming up with a team which does not guarantee you a solid mobile app.

11. Don’t Ignore the Striking Differences Between An Agency and a Mobile App Developer

A loud noise is made by big brands calling themselves as potential agencies to support your mobile app development activities. While they can be great agencies, you should base your choice on the value addition that they will provide to your end product. Introspect whether such agencies are the right choice. Choosing a mobile app development partner is indeed a tough task when you can be tempted to sign up with famous OEM brands.

Key Takeaways

Having learnt the complexities involved in churning out a mobile app, it pays to tread safe while choosing a mobile app development team. Look into all the above common mistakes that businesses make when they are just about to sign up with an app development team. Once you ponder over these blunders, you will be able to make the right choice about a professional team that guarantees you a solid app that continuously meets the changing needs of your target audience. To err is human and to learn from these mistakes pays you off big time through a mobile app that spells success to your business; in more ways than you can imagine.

After experiencing the imaginative power of virtual world through mobile games, AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) are getting more organized to offer streamlines solutions to various industries. As these technologies break the surface of traditional approach towards the way we experience physical world in surroundings, the era of new realities begin. VR has grown more mature since its inception to produce more real sensations while AR continues to virtual objects to real world environment.

But the future is turning to Mixed Reality (MR) that enables the best of virtual and augmented world. Through the convincing entanglement of AR and VR in MR, you can play virtual games with characters that can interact with your real-world environment. However, due to the puzzling amount of technologies hitting you hard, it is important to discriminate these different reality-based technologies. Let’s delve into the subject to learn more.

Introducing different realities at a glance

1) Real-world environment

The real world environment is the one in which we all live and exist and is usually understood as the natural or physical world. Most of the things you experience in natural environment are either tangible or perceptible. The creations of virtual environment is often inspired by the representations of real physical world in a new, more comprehensive or amusing format that involves people, landscapes, civilizations, and other integral aspects.

2) Mixed Reality (MR)

Mixed reality is composed of technological spectrum of multiple realities enhanced by independent technologies like VR and AR. Mixed reality can be best explained as virtual spaces in which real world environment or people are actively integrated into virtual environment to produce a unique space of visuals where both physical and digital objects seems to interact seamlessly in teal time.

Unlike VR, MR provides you with much controlled, fascinating experience that blends real and digital elements so that you can manipulate and interact with real and virtual objects or environments using powerful imaging and sensing technology.

3) Virtual reality

Virtual reality can be enabled as computer generated graphics, video, music to create vivid experience in your senses. VR can be an umbrella term for all virtual reality experiences that are not completely real. Being the most known technology, Virtual Reality can offer immersive, intuitive and tricky experience that makes you believe you are actually exploring a completely different world from the one you live in. It has HMD (Head Mounted Display) or headset tethered to the PC or console.

VR delivers deep level of immersion, a total escape into strange, impossible world that engages and stimulate all of users’ senses in a way that makes them forget the actual reality in their vicinity.

4) Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality, as the phrase suggests, augments the intensity of reality by overlaying the ready digital graphics in real-world elements to produce the experience where users can enjoy some aspects of virtual world right into their physical world. The most suitable example that embodies AR technology would be the most renowned mobile game Pokémon GO. The main principle around which the concept of AR revolves is the idea of keeping the real world in the centre while enhancing its appearance through supplements of digital details and new perceptions.

The differences that separate MR from VR and AR

Although sometimes reality technologies seem to appear similar, the real-time applications and potential of MR separate it from other technology-enabled realities.

  • Mixed reality contains hybrid configurations

Mixed reality is hybrid of multiple realities that encompass various creative configurations of augmented reality, real environment and augmented virtuality. Mixed reality is where users simultaneously explore real and virtual environments, navigating it without telling which is real and which is imaginary.

  • Mixed reality offers more immersive interactions

Mixed reality makes it possible for you to immerse yourself in the physical world while interacting with a virtual environment. As a result, mixed reality users tend to forget where they are even though they constantly remain in actual world.

  • Mixed reality creates more balanced environment

By combining the aspects of both AR and VR, mixed reality enables users to enjoy the balanced environment where users can have one hand in the virtual reality and can have it in the digital path  and the other in the digital imagery, ultimately transforming the way you interact, work and play games.

  • Mixed reality is not entirely virtual

Unlike virtual reality that drives exclusively virtual experience, MR creates unparalleled space where virtual objects are properly harnessed to augment the real world elements to a convincing extent. Hence, what you get eventually is not entirely virtual or completely real, still making users believe the spurious nature of digital interactions.

  • Mixed reality offers more intuitive manipulations

Because you can play and try so many options with mixed reality, users can engage in more variations of similar objects and better chance of intuitive manipulations. For instance, you can see objects in its varied sizes as you change your perspectives and distance from it.

Finally, how MR stands out as a versatile reality?

It is easy to get perplexed about understanding the role of mixed realities among other types of realities especially when it is the cohesion of intermingled technologies. However, the way MR works adds clarity to how MR functions differently. In mixed reality, your physical environment is scanned to generate a 3D map-like structure of your surroundings.

Due to MR technology, device gets smart enough to understand what goes where, and how to place the digital contents in realistic backgrounds. Thus, MR allows users to interact with mixed, digitally-powered realities using human gestures without losing touch with their physical environment, eventually emerging as a versatile reality technology.

Conclusion:

After maturations and increasing adoptions of virtual and augmented realities, the border between real world environment and virtual space has blurred and faded away, developing the new innovation called Mixed Reality. By offering breathtaking experience to users, MR technology continues to create unique environment where user experiences resemble the visuals exhibited in sci-fi movies. Since they are accessible to everyone, many companies show sincere interest and invest in developing MR-based solutions. MR still needs more attention and awareness. We hope to see more in the area of mixed realities in future.

Parse which is an open source back-end service platform is also a part of the SDK, which enables developers to create all sorts of apps that run on Windows 8, Android, iOS etc. The company Parse.Inc was acquired by Facebook in 2013 and later in 2017, it was shut down along with all its running services.

The efficiency of Parse hosting server can be harnessed in 2 way: Parser server hosting, self-hosting. Out of this, the parse server hosting is preferred as it can host parse applications using the available migration alternatives. And using these services, developers can utilize the benefits of Parse & Parse server.

Here are the infographics that outline some of the reliable substitutes for parse which can be availed this year.

parse alternatives