One team, one codebase, and an app ready for both iOS and Android at a fraction of the cost required in native mobile app development. What else do you need?
React Native is embraced by the mobile app development community due to its flexibility, cost-effectiveness, high performance, and many other reasons.
However, one might question if it has some shortcomings as well??
Being a mobile app development company in Dubai, we have been using React Native to create advanced, feature-rich applications for our clients.
Our developers have experienced both the upsides and downsides of React Native during the practical implementation while developing mobile apps.
In this article, we are going to talk about the pros and cons of React Native in detail. So, without wasting any time, let?s dive into the topic.
Pros of React Native
1.Less Development Time
Shorter development time is one of the benefits of using React Native. There are numerous ready-to-apply components available that you can use to accelerate the process. You don?t have to build everything from scratch.
Our team backs this claim. For example, if we built a certain app using Swift in 3 months, we can build the same app in 33% less time, or even earlier, depending on the complexity of the app.
Clients, too, feel great about this aspect of React Native as they pay on an hourly basis, and less development time means a much lower bill.
2.One Team ? Two Platforms
Code reusability is another benefit of using React Native. Hence, cross-platform development is possible to some extent depending on the number of modules you are going to use in your application.
You won?t have to spend your hard-earned cash on hiring two separate teams to build a mobile app each for iOS and Android devices. Also, it becomes much easier to manage a project and finances.
3.100% Native UI
Normally, cross-platform UX/UX isn?t as good as a native app. This is due to the fact older cross-platform solutions give a web application wrapped in a thin native container. This container runs inside of a borderless browser called WebView. It impacts the feel of a UX/UI.
On the other hand, in React Native, UI is made of native components that provide the platforms? trademark look. Be it an Android or an iOS device, UI will look perfect on both.
4.Large developer community
Since React Native is an open-source framework, it allows developers to contribute their knowledge to the framework?s development. Whenever a new version is released, it?s accessible to all.
Moreover, if you are a developer and you experience a problem during the development phase, you can turn to the community for support. There are over 50,000 active contributors to the React Native tag on Stack Overflow.
You are bound to find someone who encountered the same or a similar problem and successfully resolved it.
5.No App Store Approval Required for Updates
If you have just deployed your mobile app, you are likely to release updated versions on a regular basis after learning what?s working and what isn?t. At the least, you would require small tweaks in the functionalities or the user interface.
And every time you push an update, you have to wait for the App Store to approve it. However, if you have used React Native, your updates can bypass the App Store.
This is due to the fact that JavaScript can automatically check for updates using different services and download the latest version available. This way, you can release an update at any time and speed up your release cycle.
Cons of using React Native
1.Fewer Custom Modules
Though most of the custom modules you would need are easily available, we still believe React Native still lacks some components. The only problem will be if you decide to build a custom module from scratch.
When you decide to build a custom module, you could end up with three codebases: RN, Android, and iOS. Three codebases instead of one will be a problem for you; each of these can differ in terms of behavior and appearance.
2.Compatibility Issues
Though React Native is used by top tech players, it has small compatibility and debugging issues. These issues are common in React Native.
Developers have to be extremely proficient to deal with these or they can negatively impact your projects and a substantial amount of time will be lost in debugging.
3.Feature Lag
The competition in the mobile app landscape has always been tough. Google and Apple make sure they introduce new features with updates on a regular basis.
React native, in this regard, is a little behind. Its team does introduce new features but that takes time.
Google and Apple constantly introduce new features with updates to their OS. The React Native team does its best to bring new functionality to the platform. But that takes time.
So, some of the trendy and fancy features might not be possible to include in your mobile app.
Another drawback is React Native only supports Android 4.1+ and iOS 8.0+. So, if you want support for older OS versions, you will need to find another solution.
Conclusion
Every technology comes with its own pros and cons. But as a developer, your ultimate goal should be to choose the technology that has fewer cons and fits into your objectives. That?s where you can trust React Native. Despite its cons, it easily wins as one of the best technologies to create fast-performance, cross-platform applications.
