According to famous online statistics portal, “In 2012, 57.33 billion apps were downloaded for free, whereas paid app downloads amounted to 6.65 billion items. In 2016, free app download volume is projected to grow to 211.31 billion downloads.” The projection will encourage more and more businesses will launch mobile applications to take advantage of massive popularity of mobile apps. But the mobile app development scenario keeps changing at frequent intervals. The emergence of new devices has made it essential for businesses to create apps by targeting wearable devices along with smartphones, tablets and phablets. Likewise, they have to focus extensively on personal user experience to make their applications popular and profitable in the longer run. On the whole, the mobile app development scenario in 2015 is being transferred by a number of factors.

Factors transforming Mobile App Scenario in 2015

Responsive Design: Most businesses prefer launching cross-platform mobile apps to reach more users. But now businesses have to ensure that the app is running flawlessly on various devices powered by the same mobile operating system. Each enterprise has to ensure that its app is delivering similar and rich user experience across smartphones, tablets, phablets and wearable devices. So the developers have already started using responsive design to overcome the device compatibility. In 2015, responsive design will drive both cross-platform and mobile web application development.

Web Technologies: While developing native mobile apps, the programmers have to use programming language according to the specific operating system. For instance, they have to write iOS application in Swift and Android applications in Java. But the developers nowadays use some of the commonly used web technologies to create cross-platform mobile apps and games. HTML5 further makes it easier for developers to boost the performance of the mobile web applications without using any third-party tools. So in 2015, HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3 will be used widely by developers to create application by targeting different platform using the same code base.

Cloud Technologies: A number of popular mobile apps have already taken advantage of cloud technology. More and more businesses will soon adopt mobile cloud computing to easily integrate and synchronize their apps across multiple devices. The cloud-based application development frameworks further help programmers to create cross-platform apps with the same functionality and content. More and more developers will switch to cloud-based application development platforms to save both time and efforts.

Connectivity Optimization: Each updated version of mobile operating system provides advanced connectivity options to users. The users can take advantage of Bluetooth, GPS and similar technologies to stay connected with various devices and networks. Enhanced mobile connectivity is essential for carrying out financial transactions or mcommerce transactions smoothly. That is why; the mobile app developers have to focus on mobile connectivity optimization in 2015 to facilitate various mobile transactions.

Mobile Commerce: The declining popularity of mobile web is affecting ecommerce negatively. More and more businesses are launching mobile commerce apps to make it easier for users to buy their products or services. Many analysts have already predicted that a significant percentage of retail ecommerce sales will be carried out in 2015 through mobile devices. The users will also prefer making payment through their Apple Pay or Google Wallet without using debit or credit cards. So enterprises will soon launch innovative mobile commerce applications that support both conventional and latest payment mechanisms.

Beacon Technology: Apple has already incorporated iBeacon technology in iOS devices to effectively alert mobile apps each time the user enters or leaves a specific location. IBeacon uses a Bluetooth low energy signal to help the iOS devices to identify the current location of a user more efficiently and accurately. Many analysts have predicted that both Android and Windows Mobile devices will soon support Beacon Technology. While new mobile apps, the developers now have to focus on both Beacon and Wi-Fi services to identify the exact location of the user and provide him more relevant information.

Wearable Devices: Both Apple and Google have introduced several types of wearable devices. These devices are completely different from conventional mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. Further, they run on different versions of mobile platforms like watchOS and Android Wear. So many businesses will launch apps for these devices as early as possible to beat competition. Likewise, they need to ensure that their mobile apps are compatible with the wearable devices along with legacy mobile devices. As wearable devices are designed with features to monitor different aspects of human life, the developers have to focus on emerging wearable technologies in 2015.

Internet of Things: A number of reports have highlighted that companies have already started investing in Internet of Things (IoT). IoT aims to connect all gadgets and devices over the internet. So both individuals and users will soon require mobile apps to access and control several connected devices. The developers also need to keep specialized mobile apps according to the specific needs of each IoT project. So the businesses will love to take advantage of the opportunity by developing apps for various IoT projects.

Big Data and Analytics: Several websites have also predicted that the number of enterprise apps will increase gradually over next few years. With more and more enterprises launching mobile apps, the demand for tools for monitoring and analyzing the applications’ performance will also increase. Some businesses will also need mobile apps that help managers to quickly analyze a large amount of data, and take the right decision. So the developers have to create mobile apps with features to collect more relevant information, actionable items and useful insights.

Security and Testing: With more and more users indulging in mobile commerce transactions and using mobile payment services, enterprises have to emphasize extensively on privacy and security. The developers have to use advanced encryption techniques and effective security measures to keep sensitive and person information of users secure. In addition to exploring ways to prevent hacking and protecting user information, the developers now have to test the app’s vulnerability thoroughly. Also, they have to implement a comprehensive testing strategy to deliver a high quality app that will remain popular over a longer period of time.

The mobile app development scenario will also be impacted by the new features provided by the updated versions of popular mobile operating systems. Both Apple and Google have already released the beta versions of iOS 9 and Android Marshmallow to developers. Once the updated version of the iOS, Android and Widows Mobile hits the market, the mobile app development scenario will completely change.