The primary goal of any real device testing, regardless of the category it belongs to, is to create an unparalleled user experience. Users are always looking for something new and innovative that can enhance their overall experience with the app. Whether it’s a game, a social media app, or a productivity tool, the user experience is paramount to the success of the app.
However, a great user experience is not just about aesthetics or user interface design; it also depends on the quality of the application. An application with bugs, glitches, or errors can significantly affect the user experience, leading to frustration and negative reviews.
To ensure that your mobile application works efficiently and delivers the desired user experience, it is important to follow the mobile app testing checklists. These checklists include a series of tests that can help identify and fix any issues or bugs in the application before it is launched.
Prerequisites for mobile app testing
Before testing a mobile application, there are certain prerequisites that must be considered. Testing is crucial, especially if the app is intended for a wide range of users. Here are some important factors to keep in mind when testing a mobile application.
- Test on Multiple Devices: Since mobile applications are designed to be used on various devices, it is important to test the app on different devices with varying screen sizes, operating systems, and hardware. For instance, an app that performs well on an iPhone may not work well on a Samsung Galaxy. Therefore, it is crucial to test the app on as many devices as possible to ensure optimal performance.
- Test Under Different Conditions: Mobile apps are used in different locations and conditions, and testing should be conducted under various circumstances to provide the best possible user experience. This includes testing in different environments, like in a lab and in the field, and under different conditions, such as varying network speeds and signal strengths. By testing the app under different conditions, potential problems can be identified and resolved before users encounter them.
- Continuous Monitoring: Mobile applications are regularly updated, and it is important to have a dedicated team to test the updates as they are released. Regular testing ensures that the mobile app continues to function properly, and any issues can be detected and resolved promptly.
Identification of test cases
The initial step in your mobile app testing checklist is to determine whether the tests will be manual, automated, or a combination of both. The ultimate goal of continuous testing is to achieve a high level of automation. However, you can’t automate all test cases can be automated, so it is important to identify which types of test cases should be automated.
When deciding between manual and automated testing, prioritize automating the tests that offer the greatest ROI. Tests that are repetitive, time-consuming, prone to human error, or have downtime between steps should be automated. Additionally, tests that have stable requirements and are less likely to change should also be automated.
Unit, integration, and functional tests are the types of tests that should be automated first. Conversely, tests that are not run frequently or are subject to frequent changes should be conducted manually.
To summarize, strategic automation is an essential part of mobile app testing. Prioritize automating tests that offer the highest ROI, such as those that are repetitive, time-consuming, or prone to human error. Tests with stable requirements, such as unit tests, integration tests, and functional tests, should be automated first. Conversely, tests that are run infrequently or are subject to change should be performed manually.
Choosing the right automation testing framework
After deciding which tests to automate, the next step is to choose a test automation framework that best suits your needs. Several frameworks are available for mobile app testing automation, and here are some of the most popular ones:
Appium:
Appium is the leading framework for mobile app testing automation, and it can test both Android and iOS apps. This framework can test mobile native, web, and hybrid app tests.
LambdaTest is an advanced cloud-based digital experience testing platform that offers comprehensive support for mobile app testing on real devices through its real device cloud. LambdaTest facilitates automated testing by seamlessly integrating with well-known frameworks like Selenium, Cypress, and Appium.
With the power of these frameworks, you can effortlessly create automated test scripts that can be executed across numerous devices and operating systems. This enables you to verify the consistent performance and functionality of your applications, ensuring a top-notch user experience.
Espresso:
Espresso is an automation framework specifically designed for Android apps. The framework focuses on Android-specific UI, and it is developer-friendly. Since the framework is integrated into the Android IDE, it is easy to start using it.
XCUITest:
XCUITest is a mobile test automation framework designed specifically for iOS applications. Developed and maintained by Apple, this framework is seamlessly integrated into the XCode IDE, enabling efficient and rapid scripting.
Quantum:
Quantum is a BDD (Behavior-driven development) testing framework that can be used for both mobile and web testing. The unique aspect of this framework is that you can create automated tests in plain language, without knowing how to write code.
Determine the platform to run the test
To ensure optimal testing, you must also determine the platforms on which to run your tests. This decision involves whether to use virtual or real mobile devices or a combination of both.
Simulators and emulators are useful for testing in the early stages of development, as they test faster and help shift testing left. However, they should be supplemented with testing on real devices to ensure a thorough assessment of the application.
Real devices are essential for testing as they can catch more bugs than virtual platforms. When you test early on with virtual devices, you should switch to real devices later on in the test cycle for end-to-end UI tests. Therefore, as a best practice, it is recommended to use a mix of both virtual and real mobile devices.
Functional Testing
Functional testing is an essential testing process that ensures that all the functionalities of your mobile application work as intended. It is crucial to verify that your application works seamlessly across various devices, operating systems, and other variables.
Some of the crucial aspects that need to be tested during functional testing include sending and receiving messages while the app is running, responding to push notifications, making and receiving calls while the app is in use, resuming the app after an interruption, rejecting calls, entering and exiting the app, assessing the memory usage of the app, analyzing the impact of the app on the device’s battery life, verifying the effectiveness of biometric authentication such as fingerprint and face ID, and ensuring the proper functioning of features like camera, screen resolution, and geolocation.
Performance Testing
To ensure that your app is functioning optimally, performance testing is a necessary step. This testing ensures that your app is capable of performing well under different circumstances and conditions.
Performance testing involves testing your app under different levels of traffic, including typical, stress/load, and real user conditions. It also examines the CPU utilization of your app, as well as the time it takes to install and uninstall it, and to launch it.
Additionally, performance testing checks the performance of your app under low battery conditions and under varying network conditions. These conditions include ideal network conditions, poor connectivity, changing networks while moving, dead zones, and switching between different network speeds like 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G.
Accessibility Testing
It is essential to conduct accessibility testing for your mobile apps to ensure that they are accessible to all users, and to comply with accessibility regulations.
During automated accessibility testing, be sure to test the following:
- Contrast of text color
- Magnification of the screen
- Dynamic font size
- Ratios of color between text and background
- Compatibility with screen readers
- Readability of the application
- Capability of speech recognition
- UI hierarchy for a consistent structure
- Size of hit area for designated user interaction.
Compatibility Testing
Compatibility testing is a critical aspect of mobile app testing that ensures that your app functions seamlessly on different devices, operating systems, and their respective versions. It is essential to prioritize compatibility testing against the most commonly used mobile devices and OSes in your region. To get accurate data, you can refer to our Test Coverage Index.
Some important areas to consider while conducting compatibility testing are:
- Screen size: The app must be tested across various screen sizes to ensure that it appears correctly on all devices.
- Screen resolution: Test the app on different resolutions to make sure that the UI is properly displayed and not blurry.
- Device-specific features: Certain devices may have features unique to them, like biometric authentication or stylus support, which need to be tested.
- OS-specific features: Different OSes may have unique features that your app may use. Ensure that they work as intended across all OS versions.
- Changes in the UI: OS updates can bring changes to the UI, and your app must be tested to ensure that it functions as expected on updated versions.
Security Testing
Security testing is crucial to ensuring the safety and privacy of user data. It’s important to test for various security measures in your mobile app. These include:
- Two-factor authentication to protect user accounts.
- Biometric authentication like fingerprint and face ID for secure access.
- Proper storage of app data and private information to prevent unauthorized access.
- Proper encryption of information stored locally on the device to keep sensitive data safe.
Location and language
Apps often customize their offerings based on the user’s current location, especially those with delivery services. Testers must ensure that the app interacts with the device’s GPS to pick up the location accurately and customize its offerings accordingly.
Similarly, apps that want to be truly global must offer services in multiple languages. Testers must ensure that the app provides a high-quality user experience in every language. Users should be able to switch between languages with ease and without any issues.
Conclusion
It’s important to note that testing each of these points requires running multiple tests on multiple devices and operating systems. This can be time-consuming for manual testing.
To improve the process, organizations can supplement manual tests with automated tests. Automated tests can help cut down on test times and boost app quality by automating repetitive tests such as regression tests and tests that execute the same processes with different input values.
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