The battle between React Native vs Native has grown since the day when having a presence on both the Android and iOS platforms became essential. Needless to say that today most of us spend a great amount of time using mobile apps, which explains the high demand for development tools and platforms, accordingly.
The fundamental point of this article is to cover the Native and React Native development features, comparing both strong and weak sides. But, before we go down to comparing these two development tools, it is better to come clear about each of the development approaches thoroughly.
We will cover the following points:
- What does Native Development Mean?
- Native Development: Benefits and Disadvantages
- What does React Native Mean?
- React Native Development: Profits and Drawbacks
- Native or React Native: Which One to Go for?
- Conclusion
Let’s view all the above-listed points little by little.
What does Native Development Mean?
Imagine a situation when you want to speak with a native speaker from China, for example, but you can not speak Chinese. What would you do? Probably try to learn Chinese, right?
The situation is pretty equal with Native development. When it comes to codes, there are Swift and Objective-C, which are used to develop mobile apps for iOS. We also have languages for the Native development of Android apps, which are JAVA and Kotlin.
Considering Native development in general, then we can point out the following. It can gain access to hardware resources, which are peculiar for devices, therefore, they stand out for their exceptional performance and application quality.
Next, we will dwell on the perks and drawbacks of Native development little by little.
Native Development: Benefits and Disadvantages
Native development has the following set of benefits:
High Security
Generally, native apps are made for a peculiar platform with no tricks included, that is exactly why they show high-security levels. Using Native development, it is quite simple to measure risks and use multifactor authentication to expand user security.
Likewise, being proactive about improving productivity and security is worthwhile in native apps. The introduction of multifactor authentication in native apps contributes to a significant boost in user security.
Innovations Opportunity
Do not think that innovation processes can not be operated with React Native. No, it is not true. The only difference is that using Native development it will be done much faster and easier.
More Functions
The usage of all the resources and APIs of the platforms for efficient growth is another significant edge of Native development.
Programmers can deal with the app relying on their demands. Besides, there are no restrictions on how the native app works.
High Efficiency
Native apps can supply more proficient results for one definite platform, as they are made with the help of programming languages explicit for one particular platform. These kinds of apps work way faster and mostly do not freeze up.
Despite all the merits, Native development has its disadvantages:
Time-consuming
Different development teams can work on the same project simultaneously, or one team finishes working with the app and then another team begins. In such circumstances, more time is necessary to build up an app.
Way Overpriced
It goes without saying that the more you want to develop apps for various platforms, the heavier price you need to spend on it.
Every app functionality for each platform stays identical, however, the budget will differ, due to the fact that various development teams will work on separate platforms.
Update Frequency
For the purpose of improving the working and security processes, the app calls for updating. The app will work efficiently if the user has an updated version of the app, otherwise, there are going to be some hurdles.
What does React Native Development Mean?
Next for us to cover is React Native Development. Well, let’s picture a situation where you want to speak with a native speaker from China again, but you do not want to learn Chinese or you have other reasons why you can not do that. However, you can speak English and, fortunately, your Chinese friend can speak English. It is a win-win situation. With React Native development the meaning is quite similar. You can develop apps using one code base for every platform.
React Native Development: Profits and Drawbacks
React Native has the following advantages.
Money and Time Saving
If your budget is strictly limited, then React Native fits like a glove. You will not have to spend time and money on multiple development teams, and the reason is that only one app is necessary for every platform.
Public Support
Developer community of React Native is quite impressive. There is not going to be any problem in finding developers for your apps on freelance sites and other platforms.
Live reloading
Real-time reboot is one of the significant React Native edges. It is very effective for developers, and it saves time to render apps over and over again.
Other Plugin Support
While adding a new function, you can use another plugin. This profit allows developers to merge the app with already existing solutions to make good headway with functions and user experience.
Having viewed all the strong sides of React Native, let’s go to check the weak ones. React Native drawbacks are:
The Need for the Native Code Remains
An app written only in React Native language is not quite enough to access native features like push notifications etc. Despite the fact that some other plugins for native functions are available, they do not cover all native functions. You will have to use your own code to access native device features.
Testing Difficulty
Eliminating all the errors and debugging is time-consuming. React Native is rather young, and it is more likely to face problems for the first time. Take these risks into consideration to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Security Problem
If security is a key aspect of your app, then picking React Native may turn into a failure. The app security can be constantly compromised.
Native or React Native: Which One to Go for?
Native and React Native development both have black and white. Deciding which one is more appropriate for your app depends on your requirements and budget.
For instance, you do not have a rather big team, your resources are limited, and your aim is to make an app for both platforms, then React Native is quite alright. Nevertheless, if you have made up your mind to make a compound app that uses a peculiar code for a precise platform and the security aspect goes first, then select Native development.
So, the question of which you should be asking yourself is not which development app is the best, but which development app is best for me. To make the right decision, consider all the aspects and evaluate the situation.
Conclusion
As we have already discussed both Native and React Native have strong and weak sides, so it may seem a tough challenge to pick a side. Considering all the reasons, be ready to batten down the hatches. There is a slight hope that if you are at a crossroads and need to choose one particular framework, then this article can help you clear up some details and dispel your doubts about which one is the most appropriate for you. Take your time, think everything through and pick right.
