Integrating performance testing into your development cycle is like adding a secret ingredient to your software. By starting early with tools like HeadSpin in your CI/CD pipeline, you can identify and fix bottlenecks before they become user-facing disasters. Prioritize testing key user journeys with tools like LoadRunner and k6, automate repetitive tasks with SoapUI, and monitor performance with Grafana. Treat your app like a finely tuned instrument, constantly analyzing and improving its performance to keep your users happy and coming back for more. Remember, performance testing is a journey, not a destination, so adapt and refine your approach as your app evolves.

To know more, you can read the blog on performance testing tool that will help to understand this topic a lot.

I think, the future of mobile application testing (Appium) is bright. Appium is an open-source mobile testing framework that allows you to test native, hybrid, and web apps on Android and iOS devices. It is also supported by a large community of developers and testers. So, this is a major reason for the popularity of Appium.

Here are some of the factors that are driving the future of Appium:

• The increasing popularity of mobile apps: Mobile apps are becoming increasingly popular, and businesses are increasingly using them to reach their customers. This is leading to an increased demand for mobile application testing, which in turn is driving the future of Appium.

• The growing importance of automation testing: Automation testing is becoming increasingly important in the mobile app testing landscape. Appium is a powerful automation testing tool that can help you to save time and money by automating your tests.

• The continued growth of the Appium community: The Appium community is growing rapidly, and this is helping to drive the future of Appium. The community provides support, resources, and training to help you get started with Appium and to use it effectively.

Overall, the future of Appium is bright. As the popularity of mobile apps continues to grow, so too will the demand for Appium. Recently, I have read many blogs that revolves around Appium and I found them pretty amazing as well as informative. So, I am adding a blog link here that I found most beneficial, in case anybody wants to give one of them a read.

Data-driven testing is a test automation technique that separates the test data from the test logic. This permits the same test case to be done with various data sets, which can enhance the test coverage and improve the efficiency of the testing process.

Below are some of the perks of using a data-driven approach to automation testing:

• Increased test coverage: By using different data sets, you can test your application with a wider range of inputs and conditions. This can help you to identify and fix bugs that might not be found with a smaller data set.

• Improved efficiency: Data-driven testing can help you to automate your testing process more efficiently. This is because you can reuse the same test case for multiple data sets, which can save you time and effort.

• Reduced maintenance costs: Data-driven testing can help you to reduce the maintenance costs of your automation test suite. This is because you only need to maintain the test logic once, and the data can be updated as needed.

• Enhanced readability and maintainability: Data-driven testing can make your automation test suite more readable and maintainable. This is because the test data is stored in a separate file, which makes it easier to understand and update.

Overall, data-driven testing is a powerful technique that can help you to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and maintainability of your automation testing process. Further, if you also want to know about test automation maintenance, this blog is a must read.

There are many types of software testing that can and should be automated. Some of the most common types of automated testing include:

• Unit testing: Unit testing is a type of software testing that tests individual units of code, such as functions or classes.
• Integration testing: Integration testing is a type of software testing that tests how different units of code interact with each other.
• System testing: System testing is a type of software testing that tests the entire software system as a whole.
• Acceptance testing: Acceptance testing is a type of software testing that is performed by users or customers to verify that the software meets their needs.

In addition to these common types of automated testing, there are many other types of software testing that can be automated, such as:

• Performance testing
• Security testing
• Usability testing

Not all types of software testing can be automated, and there are some cases where manual testing is still the best option. However, automated testing in tools like HeadSpin can be valuable for improving the quality of software by reducing the time and effort required to test the software, and by increasing the coverage of the tests.

Appium is an effective mobile automation testing framework that encourages the testing of various types of mobile applications on various platforms. Below, I have named few mobile applications that can be tested using Appium include:

1. Native Mobile Apps: Appium can be used to test native mobile applications developed specifically for a particular mobile platform, such as Android or iOS.

2. Hybrid Mobile Apps: Appium supports the testing of hybrid mobile applications that are built using web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) wrapped in a native container.

3. Web Applications on Mobile Browsers: Appium can also be utilized to test web applications running in mobile web browsers. It helps in testing web-based content and interactions within the mobile browser, similar to how it is done on desktop browsers.

4. Progressive Web Apps (PWAs): Appium supports the testing of Progressive Web Apps, which are web applications that can be installed and run on mobile devices like native apps.

[b]5. Cross-platform Mobile Apps: [/b]Appium allows testing of cross-platform mobile applications developed using frameworks like React Native, Xamarin, or Flutter. It provides a unified approach for automating interactions across different platforms, enabling testers to write test scripts that can be executed on multiple platforms.

Appium provides a consistent API and methodology for interacting with mobile applications, regardless of the application type or platform. It supports both Android and iOS platforms, making it a versatile choice for mobile app automation testing. Further, if you want to have Appium test automation, you should definitely check out HeadSpin tool it gives you a platform to make your testing easier.

Businesses across many sectors have included test automation in their digital transformation efforts. Test automation can generate many times the amount of time and effort. It is essential to set expectations with stakeholders and company owners to ensure that everyone is working toward the goal of success. Equally important are defining return expectations and interacting with clients.

What is Functional Testing?

Functional testing is a sort of software testing that verifies that the software system meets the functional requirements/specifications. These tests aim to analyze each software program function by supplying the proper input and comparing the resulting output to the Functional requirements.

Functional testing consists primarily of black-box testing and does not consider the application’s source code. This testing examines the User Interface, Application Programming Interfaces, Database, Security, Client/Server connection, and other tested features.

Types of Functional Testing

Several types of functional testing categories can be utilized depending on the situation. Here are the most common ones:

Unit testing is often conducted by a developer who produces related or unrelated code units to fulfill a specified capability. Typically, this involves building unit tests that contact the methods in each division and check that the needed arguments are supplied and the expected return value is returned. Code coverage is a crucial aspect of unit testing where test cases must exist to cover the following three:

i) Line coverage

ii) Code path coverage

iii) Method coverage

Sanity Testing – To ensure the most critical and essential components of a program or system are working correctly, it is put through rigorous testing. This is usually the next step after a smoke test. It is called Sanity testing.

Smoke Testing – This Testing is performed after each build has been published to verify build stability. Also, it is referred to as build verification testing.

Regression Testing – This testing is conducted to verify that the addition of new code and bug fixes do not disrupt the current functionality or cause instability. The software still conforms to the requirements. Regression tests do not have to be as comprehensive as the actual functional tests, but they should guarantee sufficient coverage to ensure the functionality is reliable.

Integration Testing – Integration testing refers to the validation of end-to-end scenarios in which the system is dependent on numerous functional modules that may independently perform flawlessly but must function cohesively when combined to create the end-to-end plan.

Beta / Usability Testing – In a production-like setting, the product is tested in the presence of real consumers. The user’s comfort is determined, and feedback is collected from this. This is comparable to Testing for User Acceptance.

How Can Functional Test Automation Improve RoI?

Automated functional testing helps you overcome the bottlenecks in your software development journey. Here is how it can improve your RoI drastically –

Preserves and improves Reputation: When it comes to your application’s reputation, even a little flaw in the functionality may significantly impact the business. Negative reviews on the Play Store and the Software Store can damage the number of downloads your app gets and increase client acquisition expenses. Therefore, it is preferable to use software automation services that lessen the likelihood of developing a flawed product.

Reduces Time To Market: The duration of the development cycle is one of the most unaccounted-for costs in software development. The lengthier the time between discovering flaws in a software version and delivering patches, the longer it takes for the application to be released to the public. This feedback loop may be shortened, and product development life cycles accelerated with test automation.

Another critical point to evaluate is if the delay in the market entry has given a rival an edge in launching an app and gaining market share more quickly. In such situations, the expenses of a delay might force a firm out of existence.

Reliable Regression: Regression testing guarantees that the whole program functions flawlessly whenever a new feature or code is implemented. Manually doing these tests may be very time-consuming and have a poor return on investment (ROI) due to the low likelihood of identifying severe problems. Due to coder weariness, there is also a possibility of human mistakes. Reliable regression testing may be performed without human labor and regularly using software testing technologies at a cheaper cost.

Earlier Bug Detection: Your application requires constant end-to-end testing in the development phase. Using Agile, shift-left, and DevOps, apps can be tested early in the development process. Functional test automation enables frequent testing of your code so that your team can find and understand issues early in the development process. Due to early detection, your application will be free of defects, delays, and data blockages. This saves time so that your team doesn’t have to wait until the last stage to discover bugs, and they may be found in the early phases so they can go on the appropriate path. This saves time, effort, and money in application development, resulting in a higher ROI.

Controlled Testing Environment: In-house Testing is conducted in a controlled testing environment where applications are subjected to stress to determine their capacity and break-point. It enables you to test your application to the limit. It’s feasible to run your application through various situations to see how well it copes with stress. This increases your application’s reliability and scalability, increasing its marketability and resulting in a higher return on your investment.

Functional Testing Tools

These are some of the commonly used functional testing tools-

Selenium- A well-known open-source functional testing instrument.
QTP- An easy to use a functional testing tool by HP
JUnit– Primarily used for Java applications and may be used for Unit and System testing
Appium- Businesses that require testing Android and iOS mobile applications use an open-source functional testing tool. This tool is compatible with various programming languages, including Java, Python, Ruby, and PHP.
soapUI- An open-source functional testing tool used chiefly for Web service testing. Multiple protocols are supported, including HTTP, SOAP, and JDBC.
Watir- This is a tool for evaluating web applications’ functionality. It utilizes the Ruby programming language and provides browser-based testing.

Best Practices for functional testing

Your functional testing planning needs to be strong if you want the highest ROI. Do these practices for the best results-

Identifying what needs to be automated first: You should be aware that items in one setting may not function in another. When determining what to automate, you must also consider the program under test, environment, hardware requirements, and possible consequences.

Specialized Automation Group: Automation requires time, effort, and, most importantly, specialized expertise and skill-set. Not every member of your QA team may be proficient in building automation scripts or using automation technologies. Before installing automated tests, assess the varying degrees of expertise and experience of your QAs. It is optimal to assign automation tasks to those capable of doing them.

Data-Driven Tests: Test cases that involve numerous data sets should be created to be reusable. For this purpose, the data may be stored in XML, text, or property files or retrieved from a database. Creating a data structure for automation makes it simpler to maintain the framework. It also permits more efficient use of current test scripts.

Be on the alert for test-related breaks: Your test cases and automation tool of choice must be adaptable to possible UI changes. Consider an instance in which an older version of Selenium identified page items using a location. If the UI changes and these pieces are no longer in these positions, this may result in widespread test failures. Consider developing test cases that need slight modification in the event of UI modifications.

Test recurrently: Prepare a simple automation test bucket and devise a plan for its normal execution. With this, QA professionals may strengthen the test automation framework. This method also helps in identifying additional bugs.

Conclusion:

Functional testing is a critical component of software testing methodology. It ensures a system performs precisely in real-time. Only money is not the last thing in ROI. When a product suppresses the client’s expectations, that’s the best ROI.

Since functional testing is conducted from the user’s viewpoint, it leads to creating a high-quality product. It satisfies client needs and simplifies the lives of both developers and business executives at the same time.

Introduction

In 2022, the number of mobile devices operating around the world was 15.96 billion, which is projected to reach 18.22 billion by 2025, a rise of 4.2 billion devices compared to 2020. With the rapid growth in the number of mobile devices, the necessity to test various devices for compatibility and other features has become critical for enterprises. Testing real devices is a major challenge for enterprises, as mobile devices with different screen sizes, memory, CPU power, features, capabilities, functionality, and other firmware are available in the market.

Pre-release testing of applications on real devices is absolutely necessary for enterprises to ensure that apps are working properly and efficiently. Buying and maintaining all the necessary devices for performing real device testing requires a huge budget, which is not affordable for many organizations. Real device cloud is the solution to this problem. In this blog, we will understand what a real device cloud is, its significant benefits, and how it is different from traditional testing.

What is a Real Device Cloud?

A real device cloud is the testing environment that provides easy access to thousands of real iOS, Android, and other mobile devices for app developers and QA experts to test on various device/OS combinations to get real-world feedback. Popular mobile testing frameworks, like Appium, Espresso, and XCUITest, are integrated into most of the real device cloud testing environments. The real device cloud provides enterprises access to the newest and legacy devices. With this access, organizations can test the performance, usability, and functionality of their applications directly on real devices used by customers. In real-device cloud testing, enterprises can access physical devices to get insights into various factors, such as how battery charge can impact the app’s performance. Mobile device cloud or real device cloud is the preferable testing solution, as it allows testers to get app performance insights, switch devices quickly and easily, and perform automated tasks. With the help of a mobile device cloud, QA teams of global enterprises can ensure that their testing processes are efficient by verifying that the code and apps are thoroughly audited and that high-performing mobile applications are delivered to customers.

Benefits of a Real Device Cloud in App Testing

Cost is the most obvious benefit of real device cloud testing. Owning individual real devices can become cost-prohibitive, and also, maintaining those devices up to date as new models are introduced may need a significant annual budget. Real device cloud can solve all cost and budget issues faced by enterprises due to real device testing. Apart from cost, there are many other benefits of using real device cloud testing. Here are the main benefits of a real device cloud in app testing.

‍1. Leverage Unlimited Concurrency to Reduce Time-To-Market

Time is a huge factor in app development and testing. Testing an app takes a lot of time, even after automating some of the tasks. The main time-consuming process in app testing is to run apps on various devices with different specifications to check compatibility and real-time performance. The best way to reduce the time required for app testing on various devices is to run tests on multiple devices at the same time. By executing testing on multiple devices concurrently, enterprises can make app testing more efficient and ensure their customers get stable and responsive products. This will help companies to spend more time on other high-level activities.

‍2. Make the Testing Environment Flexible and Customizable

A major drawback of organizations using cloud services is that they offer predefined features without any customization options. The ability to customize the service is necessary to stay flexible and competitive in the market. QA teams working on testing apps would have their own preferred technology stack. So, it can be counterproductive to make them use different test frameworks and configurations in the cloud. With the help of a customizable real-device cloud, testing teams can work smoothly with a flexible testing environment.

‍3. Collect Reliable Testing Results from Real Devices

The two most popular methods used by QA teams to test mobile applications are testing on real devices and testing on emulators. Emulators act like real devices, but they run on computers. So, the results through this testing won’t be perfect as in real devices. Emulators are not ideal for testing apps under real-world conditions, as they don’t overheat or lose battery life. Thus, testing on real devices is much more reliable and efficient compared to emulators.

‍4. No Need to Build or Maintain a Device Lab

Real device cloud enables enterprises to save time and money that could be spent on buying devices and building and maintaining device labs. Enterprises can partner with a real device cloud provider to enable their QA teams to implement the latest testing methods without any delay. Time and cost required for maintenance and upgradation of devices can be saved by enterprises, as a real device cloud provider will take care of that.

Why is Real Device Cloud Testing the Best Option?

In the previous section, we discussed the major benefits of using a real device cloud for testing mobile applications. However, there will always be a question in the testers' minds about why to choose real device cloud testing over other testing methods, like emulators. This section will help testers understand why real device cloud testing is the best option compared to other testing methods. Here are some of the metrics that can be measured using a real device cloud to enhance the user experience and performance of a mobile application.

1. User Interface

The main reason why user experience is crucial for companies is that if users cannot find what they need within a few clicks or scrolls, they may leave the mobile app immediately. A good user interface is crucial for mobile apps to deliver flawless user experiences. Real device cloud testing is the best way to analyze user experience when external hardware and factors are involved.

2. Network Conditions

The fluctuation in network strength is one of the major reasons for the low performance of mobile apps. With many people using 4G and 5G networks, it is difficult for network providers to maintain consistent connectivity. With real device cloud testing, enterprises can execute network bandwidth throttle, which helps them to tighten or loosen the bandwidth numbers. As network issues are caused due to hardware, software, and network reception issues, simulators cannot provide accurate results. However, real device cloud testing can provide accurate analysis of the network performance and can also aid in testing.

3. Sensors

A lot of sensors are used on mobile devices to provide various features. Some of the sensors include light, accelerometer, proximity, barometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, temperature, and relative humidity sensors. Testing these sensors on real devices is crucial, as they contain complex hardware. Generally, QA experts use emulators to test sensors during the early development stages. However, testing of sensors in real devices is important in the final stages of app development to collect accurate, valuable insights into the performance of apps.

4. CPU Usage

Mobile devices can get hotter due to increased CPU use, further impacting app performance. Metrics related to memory and GPU usage can also affect CPU usage. Owing to these factors, it is difficult for simulators to test CPU usage in mobile devices. Thus, mobile device cloud testing is imperative to obtain precise readings related to mobile devices' CPU usage.

6. Battery

Mobile applications can impact the battery life of mobile devices. To check and avoid this scenario, it is necessary for app developers to test their apps on real devices. Even a highly developed simulator is not able to simulate different device battery drain scenarios and app behavior.

Why Do Enterprises Need HeadSpin’s Real Device Cloud to Effectively Test Apps?

HeadSpin's real device cloud is called global device infrastructure. Global device infrastructure enables companies to test mobile apps from various geographies and connect to thousands of real mobile devices. HeadSpin's rich global device infrastructure with physical devices worldwide also supports enterprises in the testing of different distributed edge nodes or edges. Let’s check some of the crucial features of HeadSpin’s global device infrastructure that helps enterprises test their mobile effectively.

1. Availability of Popular Devices for App Testing

With the support of the HeadSpin Platform, QA teams can remotely access and debug their mobile apps on real popular devices, such as iPhone, iPad, Samsung Galaxy, Xiaomi, and Pixel, in HeadSpin's global device infrastructure from their desktops or phones without SDK or local team support.

2. Multiple Deployment Models

HeadSpin offers multiple deployment models, namely, on-prem, cloud (single tenant), cloud (multi-tenant), and create your own lab to help organizations test and store their test data on the cloud. HeadSpin's multiple deployment models will help enterprises securely test mobile apps on real devices and store their test data and analysis.

3. Secured Real Device Cloud

HeadSpin's cloud is SOC 2-compliant. A third-party security validator performs a security assessment on the Headspin network and cloud, and the entire HeadSpin Platform is certified in passive reconnaissance, automated vulnerability scanning, and manual testing. HeadSpin also uses PBox, a secured appliance with a number lock, to store its real devices in various locations.

4. Geolocation Testing

As the best mobile app testing platform, HeadSpin supports testers in performing geolocation testing on real devices, securing mobile application functionality against impacts due to geographical factors, and ensuring optimal performance. With HeadSpin's global device infrastructure, enterprises can test their applications in 90+ locations worldwide. HeadSpin's geolocation testing helps companies to deliver a flawless digital experience for end-users by evaluating the mobile apps on various aspects, such as network infrastructure, cellular data, data bandwidth, etc., which may differ depending on the user's geographical location.

Conclusion

Performing app testing in a real device cloud can help enterprises deliver more stable mobile applications more often. Moreover, real device cloud testing can offer enterprises and their QA teams the flexibility they need to build mobile apps with optimal performance and respond more quickly to changing business requirements.

Leverage the HeadSpin’s AI-based Platform and real device cloud to perform functional and UX tests on real devices in real locations without compromising security and performance.

Mobile application testing is essential as it helps companies to create apps to scale and access in different platforms. The process is created to test different elements in the app for efficient functionality.

The testing activity is done in both manual testing and automated testing ways. Any errors developed while creating a mobile app can turn into heavy for app owners.

Some issues can lead to a lot of damage to the apps in multiple ways. There are many applications available in the market nowadays. Thus, finding out errors in the initial stage help you correct it easily.

App testing platforms like Headspin plays an essential part specifically while you are going live to the public. People stop using apps without giving it a second thought because of performance concerns. If users uninstall the app because of the errors, it can lead to damaging your reputation.

Hence, it is important to do app testing before launching it. As per me, here are some things that makes mobile app testing important:

• Evaluates Performance
• Bug finding and fixing
• Real-life usage
• Real Device results

If you have any doubts, you should know one thing that learning SQL is worthwhile. With many things, there are various career opportunities ahead of you. Therefore, now let’s jump to the topic and plan your entire learning path.

Just keep in mind that it is good to separate the learning content into smaller parts and kind of adjust the level of difficulty to your abilities. This is exactly what online courses provide you.

Step 1. Get to Know the SQL Syntax
Step 2. Take an Online Course
Step 3. Practice a Lot
Step 4. More Reading Doesn't Hurt