#mobile application testing approach

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Best practices for automating mobile testing

 With the penetration of smartphones going on at a breakneck speed, the users’appetite for mobile applications has shown a commensurate increase. This has more to do with the values of convenience, usability, and utility such applications offer to the end users. The landscape of mobile applications has expanded beyond the traditional ecommerce and gaming domains with virtually every business vertical contemplating tapping into the huge user base of smartphone owners. Thus, you see the app stores being flooded with mobile apps of all types – banking, gaming, weather, retail, health, news etc.

All said and done, these mobile apps can pose numerous challenges for their developers. These range from lack of omnichannel compatibility, cost issues, and variations in user skills. The need for a mobile app to have omnichannel compatibility is to ensure its smooth functioning across the touchpoints of device platforms, operating systems, operating conditions, and network configurations. Ultimately the cost factor becomes all important as these mobile apps need to be validated for quality across a slew of devices. To ensure a mobile app functions seamlessly across channels and platforms, it needs to undergo rigorous mobile test automation. The cost of such testing can increase, even more than the development cost owing to reasons –

Mobile automation testing has to validate the functioning of apps on numerous devices and  operating platforms.

The tests need to be frequent as operating systems or features  often go for multiple upgrades.  

The mobile testing services should ensure the apps being tested should deliver high performance and receive high ratings from their target customers. In doing so, let us understand the areas where business enterprises should focus on while going for mobile test automation.

Accessing information, products or services through mobile apps is not going to be an isolated fare, for the digital transformation of businesses would entail integration. Thus, businesses should focus on fine tuning their mobile application testing approach to include web, mobile, and desktop application testing as well. However, it must be borne in mind that mobile application qa testing would not apply to all areas of mobile functional testing. In fact, the level of testing would be based on parameters like the type of testing tool used, the functionality of use cases, and the type of application etc.

Even though businesses are clear about the need to automate the testing process, they are often unclear about the mobile application testing methodology or the specific tool features to embrace. Thus, they end up choosing open source tools like Appium, Robotium, MonkeyRunner, Selendroid, Monkey Talk etc., to test native, web or hybrid applications across Android, iOS, or WindowsOS platforms.

Challenges for businesses to choose an automation tool

Tools based on multiple architecture – cloud or emulator based

Every tool claims to be the best in the industry

Varying price range – free to premium

Not enough firsthand information for testers to understand the     features or select the criteria for testing

Best practices for automating mobile testing

Let us now discuss the best practices that businesses should undertake while automating mobile testing.

Cost estimation: Automation of testing mobile applications should begin with cost estimation. It should include the measure of efforts to set up the test environment, test script creation and execution, validate the critical requirements, integration of third-party tools, review/rework, and log defects among others.

Automation tool selection: This is arguably the critical part of any mobile application testing approach. The automation tool should have a robust recording and replay feature and the ability to integrate third-party tools. Moreover, the tool should be able to execute test cases on both simulators and devices. Importantly, simulators are used to check the functionality of mobile applications by virtualizing users. Choose a tool that works on a majority of app types and operating systems and know about any possible compatibility issues. Do not go for a tool that does not provide for an interface to modify the script, for the tester needs to make frequent changes based on the changing user scenario.

Ensure performance, load, stress, and security testing: A robust app should be able to handle load up to a specific threshold. The automated testing exercise should verify the performance of the app in terms of its ability to handle the load. This can pre-empt issues that can lead to a bad user experience. It can check out for glitches or vulnerabilities that may reside in third-party apps, for they have the potential to derail the performance of the app.

Conclusion

The automation of mobile testing entails practices that check for a range of parameters including the choice of tools, ability to record and log defects, conduct simulation for test users and provide a platform to write test scripts using a known programming language.

Check out this White Paper to know how the right combination of tools and approach can strengthens test automation for mobile applications.

Diya works for Cigniti Technologies, Global Leaders in Independent Quality Engineering & Software Testing Services to be appraised at CMMI-SVC v1.3, Maturity Level 5, and is also ISO 9001:2015 & ISO 27001:2013 certified.

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What makes Mobile Testing so important and all-encompassing?

Mobile applications are leading the way as far as driving the process of digital transformation is concerned. Their increased usage can be attributed to the scale of penetration of smartphones using the latest technologies. In fact, customers have spent around $92.1 billion on mobile apps in 2018 (Source: businessofapps.com.) At the same time, the number of mobile apps seems to have gone through the roof – 2.1 million & 2 million apps on Android and Apple app stores respectively. Also, given the scope of mobile application usage in areas such as vehicles, watches, kitchen appliances etc., customers have become choosy when it comes to any deficiency in the quality standard. The said deficiency can be related to issues like device compatibility, functional defects, and below-par user experience. No wonder mobile testing has become a critical process in the SDLC, for it is directly linked to revenue generation or the lack of it.

The challenge of staying competitive is forcing businesses to launch newer mobile apps with better features and functionalities. This has put the developers and testers under strain to not only meet the stiff market demand but even face the heat should the revenue stream is not consistent with expectations. To add to the existing challenges of stiffer turnaround times and staying on top of the technological curve, there is a plethora of device configurations, operating systems, networks, frameworks etc. Any mobile application, to provide even a modicum of quality user experience, should ensure its compatibility across the above mentioned digital touchpoints or elements.

To address the challenges of compatibility and below-par performance of mobile apps, testers are adopting methodologies like Agile and DevOps. In fact, embracing mobile test automation has enabled testers to address the inadequacies of manual testing. On the flip side, choosing the right test tool may not be the easiest thing to do resulting in inefficient and often ineffective mobile testing. Let us find out the reasons as to why the scope for quality assurance and testing is expanding.

# Entry of new devices and OS platforms: The smartphone market is expanding at a rapid pace with the entry of new players and newer versions of operating systems. Due to the frequency at which these are introduced into the market, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the QA experts to live up to the user expectations. With different variants of operating systems in the fray, ensuring the compatibility of mobile apps across operating systems like Android, iOS, Windows, Blackberry or their mind boggling versions can shut the living daylights out of many testers. And unless these issues are sorted out and users provided with seamless navigation, the concerned mobile app cannot be expected to climb the charts of popularity. Since user expectation has become the ultimate differentiator for businesses to stay competitive, testers have no option but to expand the scope of mobile testing.

# Diversity in networks: The internet connectivity network is diverse in its range. If on one side you have network configurations like GSM and CDMA, the other side has 2G, 3G, and 4G for mobile app developers to grapple with. Even though mobile test automation tools like network emulators can provide testers with the basic wherewithal to validate the compatibility of apps across networks, they do not offer the challenges of a real network. Testing a mobile app across networks requires studying the impact of Wi-Fi/3G/4G speeds.

# Security challenges: The growing menace of cybercrime has brought about the criticality of security testing. Moreover, since mobile apps are increasingly used to provision/buy/sell products and services, they deal with sensitive personal/business/financial data and information. With hackers on the prowl using viruses, trojans, malware, ransomware etc. as their tools, mobile app testers should ensure the data is properly encrypted and payment gateways made secure.

# Diversity in app types: A vast number of mobile apps are built for various industry verticals, be it eCommerce, health, payment, utility services, banking, or travel. To ensure the apps meet the desired business objectives as well as provide a seamless user experience, they need to be tested rigorously based on the relevant metrics.

Conclusion

The scale, diversity, and scope of mobile apps are expanding at a frenetic pace. To ensure they meet the basic criteria of aesthetics, usability, performance, and security, a robust mobile testing strategy should be adopted.

Diya works for Cigniti Technologies, which is the world’s first Independent Software Testing Company to be appraised at CMMI-SVC v1.3, Maturity Level 5, and is also ISO 9001:2015 & ISO 27001:2013 certified.