Right Platform For Mobile Application Development

While each mobile app development platform has its own merits based on your target audience, many mobile app developers will want to target not simply one, but potentially several platforms. The fact of the matter is that iOS, with close to 54%, and Android, with close to 30%, currently account for around 84% of the mobile marketplace share.

As a developer, I wouldn’t wish to eliminate either of those audiences (and potential revenue streams). It’s in this environment that I believe the Mac platform carries a substantial advantage with the ability to handle both bases (iOS and Android) from a single workstation. Add in the ability to run other operating systems in a virtual environment like Parallels or VMware, and you can have all of the OS environments you should run any development application all on a single hardware platform (legally and without breaking any license agreements).

For me the versatility and ability to set up multiple VMs for a number of operating systems is a big advantage. It’s the key reason I have transitioned to a MacBook Pro, even though I’m still greatly required on Enterprise application development and not exclusively mobile app development.

However that doesn’t indicate it’s the ‘Best’ platform or even specifically the ‘Right’ platform. The best mobile app development platforms is the platform that you will be comfortable with, that allows you to focus on the development of your suggestions into applications that can be brought to market in the quickest, most efficient manner possible. Determine your target audience, evaluate your willingness or desire to adjust and customize your hardware, OS, and development environment, and make any appropriate concessions for requirements, then let that determine which is going to work best for you in your own personal situation.

What’s the right platform for mobile app development? The one that is most effective for you, permitting you to work most efficiently and helping you to target your attention in which belongs—on developing standout mobile apps!