11 Strategies to Help Improve Testing of Mobile Applications.pdf

Mobile applications are at the core of the digital world today. In the past few years, there has been an exponential growth in the number of Smartphone users, simultaneously heightening the demand for mobile applications. According to Statista’s Report, the number of Smartphone subscriptions has exceeded 6 billion currently and is forecasted to reach new heights of around 7690 million by 2027.

1. 11 Strategies to Help Improve Testing
of Mobile Applications


Mobile applications are at the core of the digital world today. In the past few
years, there has been an exponential growth in the number of Smartphone
users, simultaneously heightening the demand for mobile applications.
According to Statista’s Report, the number of Smartphone subscriptions has
exceeded 6 billion currently and is forecasted to reach new heights of around
7690 million by 2027. With this rising number, there is no doubt that the
mobile application industry is flying much higher today, aiming to deliver
incredible user experiences and meet user demands. In pursuit of this goal, it
is a quintessence to review the mobile applications and ensure that these
meet all the standards and eliminate the significant flaws that disappoint the
users. Unlocking the solution to this is efficient mobile app testing with
suitable mobile testing tools and well-defined strategies to implement the
testing efficiently.

2. What is mobile application testing?
Mobile application testing is the process of validating a mobile app for its
functionality, usability, and consistency before its release. Efficient mobile app
testing ensures and verifies the app's potential to meet the expected technical
and business requirements and deliver the desired consumer experience.
The popular approaches to mobile testing
The two primary methodologies of mobile testing that exist in the market are
manual and automated mobile testing. Today's rising complexities of the
features and functionalities delivered through mobile devices have made it
challenging to leverage manual testing alone, as the QA specialist executes

3. the test end-to-end with no automation tools, extensions, or scripts. Such
processes are often tedious and time-consuming, where automated app
testing comes into play. The QA specialist generally leverages mobile app
testing tools, writes appropriate scripts, executes those, and acquires the
data. Mobile app test automation is primarily being utilized for testing
features, which require managing a very high load of tests simultaneously
with a massive amount of data. However, a developer is limited to a specific
set of tools in this methodology—the primary reason why manual and
automated mobile testing are often executed together.

What should be your testbed?
Setting up the appropriate testing environment is vital for mobile application
testing. The testbed or the test environment is arranged as per the
requirements of the App-Under-Test. In several scenarios, the testbed can be a
combination of the test environm
ent and test information. To select the right
testbed for mobile app testing, one can use any of the following:
●​Emulators/Simulators - These offer a viable option for testing while
saving substantial time and manual labor and being cost-effective.
●​Real devices - Practically, it is essential to test an application on all
the available devices. Businesses can consider designing a strategy
to shortlist specific devices based on their adoption in the particular
market or the expected user base.
Types of applications

4. Before discussing the strategies for mobile app testing, it is vital to
understand the different types of apps that require testing.
Native applications: These are built to serve users of a specific mobile
platform and are available on the Play Store or App Store. Such applications
are created by utilizing objective-C/Swift for iOS or Java/Kotlin for Android.
For cross-platform native apps, Native Script, Flutter, or React Native, are the
most frequently utilized languages.
Hybrid applications: The hybrid apps function similarly to the native apps, the
difference being that these are web apps developed using web technologies
that generally run inside a native c
ontainer, leverage the device's browser to
render HTML, and process JS locally.
Responsive web apps: These apps are built for running on mobile browsers
and are PWAs or highly responsive site versions, which offer extra
mobile-friendly features.
As we move towards discussing some vital strategies for mobile app testing,
it is essential to note that a test strategy is different from a test plan—two
concepts that are often misinterpreted.

Challenges of Mobile Application Testing
Device and OS Diversity
Mobile apps must work across a wide range of devices and operating
systems. Differences in screen sizes, resolutions, hardware, and frequent OS
updates make consistent performance difficult to achieve.

5. Network Conditions
Since mobile apps rely heavily on connectivity, they must perform well under
varying network types and speeds, from low-bandwidth 3G to high-speed 5G
and Wi-Fi. Testing across these conditions is both complex and essential.
Performance and Resource Constraints
Mobile devices have limited CPU, memory, and battery. Apps need to be
tested for responsiveness, stability, and efficiency to avoid crashes or
excessive power consumption.
User Experience
Users expect smooth navigation, quick responses, and visually consistent
layouts. Even small delays or glitches in the interface can cause frustration
and lead to app abandonment.
Continuous Updates
Mobile apps are frequently updated with new features and bug fixes. This
makes continuous testing across multiple builds necessary to maintain
reliability over time.
Building a Reliable Mobile Test Strategy
Test on Real Devices

6. Emulators and simulators are helpful in early stages, but real devices reveal
actual performance, compatibility, and user experience issues. A balanced
approach that combines both is most effective.
Cover Multiple Network Conditions
Testing should include varied bandwidths and latencies, from poor 3G
coverage to high-speed 5G and Wi-Fi. This helps uncover performance issues
that only appear under unstable or low-quality networks.
Prioritize Security Testing
Since mobile apps often handle sensitive data, security must be a key focus.
Testing should cover API protection, encryption, data storage, and
authentication to prevent vulnerabilities.
Automate Where It Makes Sense
Automation helps speed up regression and repetitive testing. However, not all
scenarios—such as gesture-based interactions or usability checks—are
suitable for automation. A hybrid approach works best.
Focus on User Experience
Smooth navigation, responsive layouts, and intuitive flows should be validated
on multiple devices. Real-world usability testing ensures apps meet user
expectations beyond just functional correctness.
Plan for Continuous Testing

7. Frequent app updates require ongoing testing across builds and versions.
Integrating testing into CI/CD pipelines ensures faster feedback and stable
releases.

Some of the key points of differences between test plan
and test strategy are:
●​A test strategy refers to a high-level static document derived from the
'business requirement document' that defines the software testing
approach and sets the testing standards. Usually, the project
manager or business analyst develops a test strategy. On the other
hand, a test plan is derived from SRS (Software Requirement
Specification), prepared by the test lead or manager. The principal
purpose of test plans is to include the details related to testing.
●​Test strategy often includes objectives and scope, test processes,
documentation formats, team reporting structure, client
communication strategy, and similar aspects. In contrast, test plans
include test plan ID, features to be tested, testing tasks, test
deliverables, responsibilities, and schedules.
●​One of the differences in terms of the purpose is that a test plan
assists in determining possible issues and dependencies in order to
identify risks, while test strategies are long-term plans of action that
can help retrieve information that is not project specific and put into a
test approach.

8. Let us walk through some of the most effective strategies to streamline
mobile app testing.
1. Involvement of QA with business and product teams in the initial stages of
development
More often than not, QA is included in the later stages of the development
lifecycle, compromising the efficacy of the application development process.
Instead, both QA and testing must be incorporated early in the design process,
before the final design is built and the app is ready and consider multiple test
cases that will be leveraged. This step can facilitate identifying the pitfalls
while the app is still in the development phase and eliminate the bugs or
hang-ups to deliver seamless app performance to its users.
2. Cross-Platform testing
Today, users have the freedom to choose among a wide array of devices and
OS to access the applications. Therefore, it is essential to deliver flawless
performances across these platforms. Post identifying the suitable OS
versions that will be supported, it is crucial to look into which devices are the
right match and need to be tested. Testers can utilize emulators in tandem
with physical device testing to make device testing more cost-effective and
achieve amazing test results.

3. Security testing
Security issues are one of the key concerns of users today. As the devices
have become an integral part of our lives, we often share a significant quantity
of sensitive data such as identity information, passwords, location history, and
much more, leaving these data vulnerable to threats. As a result, it is

9. mandatory to execute security testing to validate the application's resistance
to attacks from malicious users. For deploying effective security testing, it is
necessary to implement a robust and well-defined strategy as a base to bridge
the security gaps efficiently. While developing a security testing strategy, it is
crucial to consider the following factors:
●​Understanding and knowing the environment or the platforms which
will be used to run the application and identify the vectors that the
attackers might use on the specific OS
●​Developing multiple lines of defense that include mobile app testing
tools with static, dynamic, and forensic analyses and apply them
together to delineate different ways an attacker can hack the
application ●​Running a test from an attacker's perspective that enables one to
understand better the weaknesses and pitfalls and how the attacker
might exploit those
4. Network connectivity testing
Although users may be using high-speed office WiFi most of the time or have
great connections at home, a significant population is challenged by spotty
connections and low-speed internet. In such unfavorable conditions, the
inconsistent network reception leads to high latency or poor performance
while switching between variable network speeds. At this point, the QA team
must ensure seamless
and consistent performance across multiple network
speeds and conditions, from LTE to WiFi, and consider sudden changes
between networks, speed, and even break connections off.

10. 5. UX/UI testing
Accomplishing excellence in designing a mobile application often relies on its
user interface (UI) and user experience (UX). An efficient UI testing assists in
interpreting the ease of use, consistency and logic, accessibility, and
compatibility of the application to find out how the application interacts with
the end-users. On the other han
d, UX testing involves testing multiple aspects
of the user experience to determine the right-matched way for the app and its
elements to interact with the audience. While executing UX tests, it is a
mandate to ensure the following checkpoints:
●​Easy navigation through the application
●​Seamless and fast transaction and order placement processes (if
any)
●​Adequate access to product information for the users
●​Incorporating user feedback
6. Testing across multiple screen dimensions and specifications
As testers need to consider testing the apps across different platforms and
devices, it is equally vital to consider the different specifications and
dimensions that come with various devices. Screen size is a crucial
component in the testing process, as it can unfold bugs that negatively affect
the app's layout. When an application fails to adjust suitably across specific
dimensions, it affects many elements, including some critical functionalities
left off the screen, losing significant
parts of their utility and deteriorating
users' digital experience and the overall brand value.

7. Battery testing

11. Battery life is a primary concern for the users. Today, several apps leverage
battery-intensive processes, including storing and sharing heavy data,
streaming audio and video content, geolocation elements, and many such
aspects that consume a hefty amount of the battery. QA testers should run
multiple battery test features to identify the parts of the apps that drain the
battery the most and accordingly eliminate or modify those. 8. Application size and storage testing
More often than not, users refrain from installing applications that consume
too much space on their devices. In the first place, developers and testers
must focus on optimizing the size of the app to the possible extent without
compromising the usability and offerings of the app. Additionally, testers
should ensure that the application size doesn't exceed a specific limit with
each of the updates or new releases to an extent where end-users would not
prefer using the applications anymore.

9. Application permission testing for privacy
No business would want to scare off its users with a plethora of permission
requests for an app, making them feel vulnerable to privacy concerns. A
couple of years back, 215,000 apps were removed from the App Store for
requesting and collecting massive amounts of user data or other privacy
violations. A tester needs to ensure that the app doesn't seek any permission
that is not used while using the app. Again, a tester should ensure removing
the permission screen for any eliminated feature of the app. Additionally, it is
vital to test the proper combinations of the permissions.
10. Testing the application upgrades scenarios

12. App upgrade testing is very crucial for mobile app testers. This process helps
ensure that the app doesn't crash on the upgrade, as the development team
might have provided a mismatched version number. Besides, data retention
with upgrades is critical in the exact preferences the user had saved in the
previous versions to avoid hassles while using the app. For example, in food
delivery apps, cab apps, or digital wallet and banking apps, the users save a
considerable amount of data like card details, addresses, contact information,
and much more, which must be appropriately retained with every upgrade.
11. Performance testing
As users across the globe go mobile, the performance of each app that they
use impacts its acceptance and popularity among the users. Performance
testing thus becomes a principal element in the app testing pipeline where the
testing team, therefore, should check the application response time and
latency to track and predict performance across numerous scenarios and use
cases. It is imperative to check the response of the apps when a large number
of users are using the app simultaneously, creating a major load on the
servers.

Factors to consider when working in an
agile app development project
In the recent past, there has been a severe inclination toward agile
environments and methodologies that effectively enhance flexibility in
features, improved readiness, and speed-to-market.
Following are some considerations for app testing in agile projects:

13. · Appropriate test environment
Real devices are the most suitable for validating every aspect of a mobile
app's functioning in real-life conditions. Nonetheless, on several occasions, a
substantial number of real mobile devices are required, which becomes
time-consuming and negates the deadline targets in Agile projects. Further,
test engineers often have to wait for their peers to finish testing activities on
devices before gaining access to it. To eliminate these time-consuming
factors, test leads can consider accessing several mobile physical devices via
cloud technologies. However, cloud devices are not the perfect substitutes for
real devices as service providers impose limitations on performance testing
opportunities, manual and automated testing time, and the maximum size of
app files that can be uploaded. Therefore, a test lead should precisely
determine the number of actual devices required, the combination of real and
cloud devices, and the types of test cases run with the cloud device farms.
· Aligning development and testing
Establishing a seamless development and testing alignment is crucial for
every project. In agile projects, this can be executed through weekly meetings
or videos and regular goal settings in common chats. Additionally, continuous
integration tools with varying source code management tools drive tracking
code amendments and bug fixing, making them visible to test engineers.
· Early and efficient QA
The mutual involvement of QA professionals and BA ensures that user stories
clearly state what is within and outside the testing scope and outline
dependencies between user stories. This capability allows achieving a clear

14. testing scope and a test plan, providing adequate time to validate a mobile
app's functions crucial for user adoption. Besides, it allows test teams to
create basic test cases even before the development begins, prioritize
ongoing testing efforts, and meet iteration deadlines of the agile projects.

Conclusion
It can be concluded that behind each great app is effective mobile app testing
that aligns with a well-defined strategy. Effective strategies can help address a
significant portion of the challenges that an app can showcase early on in the
cycle, which helps optimize the go-to-market time and guarantees the optimal
functionality and quality of the app.
This article was originally published on:
https://www.headspin.io/blog/11-strategies-that-you-can-deploy-for-effective-m
obile-application-testing