Why Do Mobile Apps Crash? Apps are prevalent everywhere in the plugged-in world today. We depend on mobile apps to take care of everything, from business to personal correspondence to getting directions, so when these applications crash we’re naturally frustrated. Getting answers depends on many factors.
The Major Reasons Apps Crash
The reasons behind app crashes can vary between Apple iOS and Android devices. There are so many components behind an application functioning properly, making this one of IT’s top challenges of the past 30 years. When developers don’t realize that these many pieces aren’t properly working together, it can create problems for consumers down the road. But app crashes aren’t always the fault of developers—there are a plethora of other problems on hand.
Too Many Users
One of the dangers of success in any field is that demand can exceed supply. This is particularly true of apps, where millions of users can discover an app at once. At the same time, both Apple and Google always release new operating systems, and each of these has many updates. With so many devices that can run apps, it sometimes leads to incorrect memory or CPU usage.
Device Incompatibility
Device incompatibility is a big thing here as there’s fragmentation within platforms. It’s impossible to test every Android device, and even with iOS, there’s still a fair amount of fragmentation. Developers can’t just test on one devices and expect it to work the same way on another. If you have an app that runs on everything from an iPod touch to an iPad, you can expect performance differences.
Network Changes And Other Issues
- Changing between cellular networks and Wi-Fi can lead to lost connections, and that affects stability negatively.
- Browser incompatibility is another big problem. While Apple has built a good mobile Safari, for example, applications that interact with third-party browsers like Chrome often aren’t tested.
- Constraints of bandwidth also lead to issues.
- Bugs are huge. Fatal bugs often occur when a new feature is introduced that impacts another part of an app.
Android vs. iOS: Does the Platform Make the Difference?
While both iOS and Android operating systems experience issues with crashing, iOS devices seem to have greater problems. A study by Crittercism, a mobile apps monitoring startup, demonstrates that iOS apps are 3.5 times more likely to crash than those for Android. Still, there are some caveats to that figure. Consider Reading iPhone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S3.
What the Figures Mean
Many of the aforementioned reasons can cause these problems, including Internet connection and what happens when the device switches between 3G and Wi-Fi. Hardware issues, like where the camera or GPS services are located, can also cause difficulties.
Android and iOS deal with crashes differently. On an iOS device, if there’s a crash, you’ll just end up back on the home screen. On Android, on the other hand, you’ll get a force close dialogue. This means that iOS users don’t even always realize that their app has crashed.
Why More iOS Crashes?
There are more app launches for the iOS platform, and this can account for an increased number of crashes. However, analyzing app crashes as a percentage of each app launch, as done in the Criticism study, shows that iOS apps are still crashing at a greater percentage than Android apps overall.
Still, data can be skewed by new releases of operating systems. When iOS 5 launched, for example, iOS apps experienced more problems as they worked out the kinks.
Additionally, Android lets developers push updates faster than Apple. This means that updates that fix bugs and other issues can appear immediately for Android users.
Are There Better Apps?
It’s important to note that in both systems, the best apps crash less than lower quartile apps for both iOS and Android. The fact that Android crashes less than iOS makes less of a difference with those top apps as both have much lower crash rates—though Android still takes home the better score.
Exploring Apps Crash Solutions for Users and Developers
There are often easy fixes to crash problems. First, users who rely on their applications will want to learn more about T-Mobile smartphone apps and platforms that run on apps. Sometimes just restarting your device will do the trick. Checking for updates is also a good way to avoid issues.
Tricks For Developers, Tips For Consumers
On the developer’s side of things, they should make sure that they are thoroughly testing performance before an app is released.
- There are many services available that allow developers to test apps under real-world and controlled conditions.
- When making apps, developers should also account for and properly test things such as varied devices and network changes. These simple problems can make a world of difference.
- Consumers can do their part too to be aware of and avoid things that cause crashing, including changing networks.
- Developers are always generating new updates to apps that create new features and fix bugs. This fixes some problems, but it can cause others if users aren’t updating.
If you have a device that uses apps, make sure that your software and all of your apps are updated. This is especially true of iOS devices, Apple recently launched iOS 6, where taking your time to update (or never bothering to do it at all!) can lead to crashes. Android allows for auto-update on apps and this eliminates some problems.
The Last Word
Mobile apps crash for a variety of reasons, from platform to issues with development to a user’s own omissions. Proactive users can keep their devices up-to-date and look into the best systems for their needs to make sure that their apps are getting the job done.
