Mobile App Testing: Definition, Its benefits & How to choose the right one

24/03/2025

In today’s highly competitive market, delivering a flawless mobile app experience can make or break your business. Customers expect apps that function seamlessly, are secure, and provide a smooth user journey. This is where mobile app testing becomes a game-changer for businesses. By ensuring that your app performs as intended across various devices and operating systems, mobile app testing not only improves customer satisfaction but also enhances your business’s reputation.

Let’s explore the key benefits of utilizing a mobile app testing service for your business.

What is Mobile App Testing?

Mobile app testing involves validating mobile applications (for both Android and iOS) to ensure their functionality and usability prior to public release. This process is essential for confirming that the app aligns with both technical and business standards.

Effective mobile app testing requires teams to assess the app across various screen sizes, operating system versions, and diverse network conditions. This comprehensive approach guarantees optimal performance across a wide range of devices upon launch.

Key aspects of mobile app testing include:

• Evaluating app performance on different OS versions (e.g., Android 7.0, 8.0, etc.)
• Checking the app’s display in both portrait and landscape orientations
• Verifying compatibility and performance under specific settings
• Ensuring the app works with mobile sensors such as the gyroscope, accelerometer, and GPS
• Testing the graphical user interface (GUI), including menus, dropdowns, and navigation buttons, for proper functionality.

How does App Testing benefit your business?

• Better User Experience, Leading to Higher Retention

A better user experience is crucial for increasing retention rates, as nothing frustrates users more than an app that freezes, crashes, or acts unpredictably. Engaging a dedicated mobile app testing service provider ensures that your application is user-friendly and performs consistently, even under heavy usage.

Testers perform usability assessments to uncover areas where users may encounter confusion or difficulty. This valuable feedback allows developers to implement changes that enhance user satisfaction, ultimately boosting retention rates and encouraging positive reviews.

• Compatibility Across Devices and Platforms

Mobile app testing focuses on ensuring compatibility across various devices and platforms, as users interact with apps on a multitude of devices featuring different screen sizes, operating systems, and hardware specifications. Cross-platform testing services play a vital role in confirming that your app provides a consistent, high-quality experience, whether users are on Android, iOS, or other platforms. This thorough testing process helps minimize the risk of losing potential customers due to compatibility issues.

• Enhanced App Performance

Mobile app testing is crucial for enhancing app performance, as slow-loading applications or those that lag can drive users away. Performance testing services specifically target issues that may lead to inefficiencies, such as memory leaks or poorly optimized code. By addressing these concerns, mobile app testing ensures that the application operates reliably across different conditions, including periods of high traffic and low network availability.

• Continuous Improvement with Regular Updates

Mobile app testing is essential for facilitating continuous improvement through regular updates, which are necessary for maintaining market relevance. Testing services provide regression testing to confirm that new features or updates do not interfere with existing functionality. This approach is especially valuable for businesses that depend on frequent app enhancements to meet evolving customer expectations.

• Building a Reputation for Quality

Building a reputation for quality is essential for any business, and apps that operate seamlessly convey a clear message about your commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction. Partnering with a trustworthy mobile app testing service provider is crucial in establishing this reputation. Companies that consistently release thoroughly tested applications tend to experience greater customer loyalty and enhanced brand recognition.

Who performs Mobile App Testing?

To launch a successful and optimized mobile app, comprehensive mobile app testing is essential. App development teams typically have dedicated QA professionals who conduct tests during each sprint. However, it’s also beneficial to include non-QA stakeholders—such as developers, management, product owners, and potential users—in the testing process.

This diverse participation enriches the mobile app testing experience by incorporating various perspectives. Product owners can provide valuable non-technical insights that QA managers might overlook. Since a successful app must excel beyond just technical performance, feedback from individuals in different roles can enhance its functionality and appeal to a broader audience.

For those unfamiliar with coding and seeking to participate in mobile app testing, tools like Airmobi offer a solution. You don’t need coding skills to utilize their interactive cross-device testing features. For example, Airmobi is useful for marketers and web designers who need to quickly assess apps for cross-device compatibility and responsiveness.

Typically, QA teams execute test scenarios across multiple real device testing to ensure the app meets compatibility standards.

How to choose the right software testing device?

Here are a few factors to consider when choosing right Mobile App Testing Tool:

1. Access to Real Mobile Devices

For effective mobile app testing, it’s crucial to evaluate your app on real mobile devices to observe its performance under actual user conditions. Emulators and simulators fall short in fully replicating real-world scenarios, such as handling incoming calls or varying battery and network strengths, making them unreliable for final releases.

While you could establish an in-house mobile device lab with a range of devices running different operating systems, this approach demands significant time, effort, and financial resources to maintain and update.

A more efficient solution is to utilize cloud-based mobile app testing tools like Airmobi. These tools allow you to conduct both manual and automated testing on the latest devices equipped with various operating systems. Additionally, they facilitate responsive testing on real devices, ensuring your app performs well across different screen sizes and resolutions..

2. Integrations with App Testing Frameworks & Tools

When selecting a mobile app testing tool, it’s vital to choose one that simplifies workflows for developers and testers. Prioritize cloud-based tools that integrate seamlessly with commonly used frameworks and tools. This ensures that after acquiring a mobile app usability testing solution, you can avoid time-consuming additional downloads and installations.

3. Build Security

Top mobile testing tools prioritize data security, recognizing the risks associated with collaborative app development. The distribution of builds increases the likelihood of unauthorized access during vulnerable stages. It is crucial to ensure that the tools you evaluate have a strong track record of data security and regularly update their systems to protect against emerging threats like viruses and malware.

Additionally, any mobile app testing tool should comply with security standards and regulations to ensure secure data management and privacy protection. Devices used for testing should be new and configured to factory settings, with all data automatically wiped after each test.

4. Test Reporting, Error Capturing & Debugging

A reliable mobile app testing tool must effectively capture test failures and generate detailed reports that pinpoint the exact moment of failure. Reports should provide comprehensive information about the environment and test conditions at the time of the failure. The tool should include features for taking screenshots and exporting reports in various formats, enabling easy access across different devices and operating systems.

5. Support for Continuous Testing

The best mobile testing tools recognize the importance of data security and the potential risks during app development. Evaluate mobile app automation tools for their commitment to robust data security practices and their ability to regularly update systems to counter emerging threats. Ensuring compliance with security standards is essential for maintaining secure data management and protecting sensitive information.

6. Support for Different Testing Techniques

When selecting a mobile app testing tool, it is crucial to choose one that is regularly updated to support new forms of app testing. For example, any tool acquired should include accessibility testing capabilities to comply with legal guidelines that mandate software usability for individuals with disabilities. The ideal mobile app testing tool should not only meet current requirements but also adapt to future trends and releases, incorporating the latest updates to remain effective. 

Common mistakes to avoid while running Mobile App Tests

Before starting mobile app testing, it’s essential to clarify the app’s purpose, including its intended functionality, target users, and their expectations, as well as the expectations from product managers and other stakeholders. Addressing these questions is crucial before initiating QA activities.

Testing everything at once is impractical given modern release timelines; prioritize what’s important first. Relying solely on emulators and simulators is insufficient, as they fail to accurately replicate real device functions, making it impossible to obtain conclusive results for compatibility and performance. Therefore, testing must be conducted on actual mobile devices from various manufacturers and operating systems, ideally using a real device cloud.

While the user interface (UI) is critical and requires thorough testing, it’s equally important to evaluate APIs and backend services. A strong UI can be undermined by a weak backend that causes frequent crashes.

Finally, proceed with a clear plan that outlines which features will be tested in each sprint, the specific tests to be executed, prepared scripts, and expected results. Given the complexity of modern apps, a structured approach is necessary for comprehensive testing.

How does Airmobi help with Mobile App Testing?

Airmobi is an innovative cloud-based service that transforms mobile app testing by providing developers remote access to a wide range of devices anytime, anywhere. This accessibility streamlines testing and reduces time to market.

Key Features of Airmobi

1. Remote Device Access
   Airmobi allows users to manage smartphones and tablets remotely, ideal for teams needing to conduct testing without being physically present. Users can instantly rent various devices, making it easy to obtain the necessary hardware for short-term projects.
2. PC Keyboard Input
   Users can enter text from a PC directly to mobile devices, significantly enhancing efficiency for tasks like website checking. Airmobi also offers real-time clipboard synchronization, allowing seamless transfers of text between devices.
3. Extensive Capture Functions
   Airmobi facilitates easy capture of still images and videos for documentation of testing results. Users can record screen activity and save device skins, making it suitable for various applications, from verification evidence to instructional manuals.
4. Audio Input/Output Functionality
   With robust audio features, Airmobi supports testing of voice-driven applications, ensuring low latency and high-quality voice performance. Note that audio functions may not work with apps that monopolize the microphone.
5. Seamless Integration
   Airmobi integrates smoothly with existing testing tools, connecting with frameworks like Appium and Calabash, as well as development environments such as Android Studio and Xcode. Its ThriftAPI function allows for debugging and running automated tests, fitting perfectly into your DevOps workflow.

Discover how Airmobi can revolutionize your mobile app testing experience by providing the tools you need for efficient, effective development. Don’t miss out—sign up today and take the first step toward enhancing your testing process!