Which framework is best for android app development? 

Tags: android, devops, programming, productivity
Published: 2021-07-22 07:56:27

Android is one of the most popular mobile operating systems. The growing popularity would soon make its share in the market grow more than 87 percent in 2022. It is regarded as one of the best OS for bringing custom apps into material reality. With approximately 1.5 billion downloads a month, it dominates the market share of the smartphone operating systems.

Android has a large community that supports it, one of the reasons being that it is highly customizable. With this, the programming world teems with a vast number of <b>Android Development tools</b> that could make the process of selecting the right one a bit complex and complicated. 

Consider you want to renovate your home, and for that to happen, you would require expertise on interiors to the type of styling to the selection of the flooring. You will hire an architect, and that architect has a team that already has the desired data on where to get what and at a reasonable price to help you ease the process of renovation. It also makes it easier for you to make decisions. That’s the same thing with an Application framework. 
<a href="https://blog.codersera.com/blog/top-android-frameworks-and-libraries-for-app-development-in-2020/">Android Application Framework</a>is a toolkit in itself that makes the process of making an app easier for the developers. Consider it a bricolage of various necessities that would be required to make an app- whether it is graphics, special features, functionality, or animation! The main purpose is to help the developer manage, provide, modify, and even fix the bugs in the process of coding without wasting any substantial amount of time. 

Different <b>frameworks</b> possess different unique points making them better suited for a certain type of project. However, let’s say which framework stands out as the best amongst the many frameworks. 

<h2>The best Frameworks for the android app development would be</h2>

<h3>Native Android Development</h3>

It provides you freedom and flexibility when it comes to creating a custom complicated design with complex transitions and animations. It uses the device's hardware features like the camera, sensors, microphone, and several other functions. 

Native apps are built usually with Java, Kotlin, or keeping C++ languages in mind. Other languages can be used, however, they might need additional tooling and can require additional work. 

<b>Java and Kotlin/b>

Java has been the most sought-after language for developers when it comes to native android development. Along with that, Java has been the main language for Android development. 

Kotlin is a new programming language that entered the programming world in 2016. It has become quite prominent due to its simpler syntax and interoperability with Java. A lot of developers prefer this language as it involves lesser coding and faster development 
Along with that, Kotlin uses JVM, which makes sure the code runs the same as the way Java is run. A lot of Java coders are switching to Kotlin due to its shared compatibility with Java. Among other reasons, the compiler generates bytecode- a set of instructions that will get executed by JVM.

<b>Native Development Kit</b>

Native Development Kit is used especially when you have to program performance-critical portions of an app. Also, you can optimize the performance of the app through NDK. NDK provides a lot of libraries written in C and C++ which come quite in handy for developers when building an app.

RenderScript is one of the frameworks that developers use to achieve great performance in native apps. This framework is optimally used when dealt with data-parallel computation. Highly proficient when you want apps for image processing, computational photography, and computer vision. 

Along with this, developers have a plethora of options to draw objects on the screen. Also, one of the best things about Native Android Development is that at the end of the day your code gets easily converted. It is the best as you can have faster performance as compared to other hybrid platforms. Another point to be noted that we have already discussed is its integration with C and C++ that is seamless.

<h3>React Native</h3>
it is a popular <b>open-source framework</b> that is highly in demand due to its cost efficiency for small-budget business projects. The best thing about this framework is that it is capable of working on both hybrid/cross-platform app projects. Given that it was launched by Facebook, it enjoys immense community support. 

One of the limitations is the lack of stable versions and you may end up facing difficulties while running the code in different versions. 

<h3>Flutter</h3>
Written in Dart language, it is developed by Google as a multiplatform SDK. Considered one of the best frameworks for hybrid app development. It has already pre-built themes for Android and has a fast 2D rendering engine called Skia.

Flutter simplifies the process of coding as a single codebase is required that will run on different platforms. Also, it makes the process of developing cross-platform apps quite easy as well. However, it does not have a stable version.


<h4>Wrapping Up</h4>

Choose a framework that fits your project requirements accordingly. Every developer has a personal preference and needs to know how his expertise checks all the boxes