Difference between native & hybrid app?

🎤 General Discussion Android
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There are still many misconceptions about native and hybrid app development especially when it comes to mobile.
like i unable to decide, to develop native app or hybrid app?

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@jennysmith Thanks very much for your question! Believe it or not, this question comes up constantly especially when it comes to very important business decisions related to timelines, and budgets.

Here is my take on the issue:

The big advantages of doing Hybrid Mobile development are two:

  1. Develop for multiple platforms at once, using a single SDK, and thus, managing one team
  2. Reduced overhead/cost as a result of working with a single SDK/team.

As a native iOS developer, I’ve looked into this issue in detail, and know of many large companies and banks who have used the hybrid approach. While no solution is a silver bullet, I honestly, and sincerely believe that building your app using native technologies is definitely the better way to go in terms of building a better product, as well as building strong, relevant skills, and experience for yourself. My reasons for this conclusion are as follows:

  1. No hybrid technology will EVER produce a set of tools for a particular device that is as good as the tools provided by the company who actually produces the technology. Think about it. You will never be able to translate a masterpiece like “Hamlet” into another language like French, and expect the translation to be on par with the original. Nothing will ever be as good as building a product from the ground up using the native technology.

  2. Most companies that initially tried to cut costs by using Hybrid technologies for building their apps, eventually had to rebuild their products from scratch using Native technologies. I know this first hand from attending presentations by consulting companies with high profile clients.

  3. Building your app using Hybrid technologies essentially “pigeon-holes” yourself. What I mean by that is, because the overwhelming minority of developers use Hybrid technologies, your resources for learning, and for receiving help will be limited. Using native technologies opens the door for more help, and resources, and also means that your skills that you develop from using native technologies will be relevant to more job opportunities.

So how do you answer the million dollar question of, “How do I build my app with a limited budget, quickly?” My answer is simple: Build on ONE SINGLE platform, FIRST. Pick either iOS or Android, and build EXCLUSIVELY for that platform. Given the success that you achieve from that platform, you can then gradually migrate to the other platform when you have the resources. The advantage of this approach for a startup is that if you encounter roadblocks, or negative feedback from your users, at least only half of your potential user base isn’t affected or “tarnished”. The other benefit of this approach is that you build the best possible product for one platform, and maximize the opportunity for success from that platform. From that success, or from learning the mistakes on that platform, you expand to the other.

I hope this makes sense!

All the best :slight_smile:

3 Likes
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Majority of the developers in this generation faces a dilemma and are unable to decide if they want to develop a Native App or Hybrid app?

Native App:
Native apps are those which are built for a particular operating system and can be accessed only from one dedicated app store. Native apps are those downloaded from App store or Google Play. Android applications are developed with the help of Java, Windows, C++ etc and can be accessed only by the android users. On the other hand the development of iOS application takes place using XCode/Objective-C. The process of development is time consuming and involves lot of investment.

Hybrid App:
Hybrid app is a combination of native and web applications. It is featured with incorporation of operating system features and can be distributed through the app stores like native app. Hybrid app is compatible to use cross compatible technologies. Hybrid apps can be developed without much of your efforts and requires less maintenance. The speed of your hybrid app is linked with the speed of the user’s browser.

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Great answer, especially this paragraph which summarize a simple concept perfectly : don’t aim too high at first, start with little apps on a single platform the, according to theirs success, add some functionalities or even develop it on other platforms.

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@syedfa thank you for explaining this topic in depth.
I really like your answer and especially the way you are explain it.

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Thanks very much for your kind words! You’d be surprised as to how a reasonable solution exists for a company’s mobile needs. The problem is, many business people don’t understand the ramifications of their technology decisions, and thus, what appears to be a good, cost-saving decision in the beginning, ends up becoming a costly mistake later. It is what it is. More importantly, as a developer, I would also be wary of developing skills that may not be so marketable after a project is complete.

Just my two cents :slight_smile:

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Thanks once again for your initial question! You have no idea how often this question comes up, and unfortunately why so many companies who initially thought going hybrid was a good idea for their mobile needs in the beginning regretted it afterwards.

I also forgot to mention one important detail here, and that is, hybrid development does come at a cost. These companies charge money based on user base, so there may be costs that you as a business will incur that you haven’t anticipated initially.

Finally, and more importantly, you as a developer have to consider the investment you are making with your time. I know senior iOS developers who have walked away from contract opportunities once they found out that the company was going to pursue a hybrid solution. There is too much to learn, and so little time, the last thing you and I as developers want to do is use what little resources we have and get a minimal return on that investment. Given the choice, it’s always a safer bet to go with a technology that is supported by a company like Apple or Google vs a third party. You don’t even have to take my word for it, simply go to any job board where mobile developer jobs are advertised and compare the number of openings for native iOS/Android developers vs Hybrid developers. It’s significantly skewed in favour of native developer opportunities so that should tell you something :slight_smile:

Take care, and thanks again for posting!

1 Like
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Thanks for the great answer, I had a similar idea, but was not sure if I was in the right path or not and I think is more clear now with your explanation.

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@javieroh Thanks very much for your kind words! Much appreciated :slight_smile:

All the best!

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