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Creating an app - iOS or Android first?

General JUCE discussion
#1

Been wondering if mobile app developers using Juce have any experience or preference to share regarding focusing on Android or iOS first. I am developing in Xcode on a Mac but looking to create an Android app initially, mainly as I use an Android phone and don't have any iOS devices to hand at the moment.

I've been advised to focus on iOS first and that Apple user are more willing to pay for apps and therefore more potential income... however I would like to reach as many users as possible. 

I am building a specialised app for my own needs that hopefully others will find useful too, but it is a bit of niche so not expecting it to be a big seller once finished and released. 

Any thoughts much appreciated.

#2

What kind of app do you want to build? If it has anything to do with audio or midi then iOS is way ahead there. I'm an Android fan but unfortunately it's sorely lacking in music-related APIs.

 

#3

as juce is multiplatform, i guess you will do both at the same time!

While you can begin to test you app in the ios simulator, you can also test your app with eclipse and an android simulator or on your android device from time to time.

but from my small experience on mobile app, if you're on a mac with xcode, you'll find it much more comfortable to work on ios !

 

#4

Personally I develop iOS apps using a desktop app first by just creating a window with the same resolution as the screen size. This is much fater than waiting for the simulator or device to load up each time you run the app.

Obviously you will need to build on an actual device as well as the way users interact with the app will be completely different. This is where JUCE is brilliant as you can use the same project for both. I actually have the OSX build open in one space and the iOS in another and just switch between them depending on what I'm testing.

(One thing you might want to do with a desktop app is scale the desktop size so that the on-screen window size actually matches the device as mobile devices tend to have higher DPIs than desktop displays. It's a lot easier to layout buttons etc. this way.)

#5

Thanks guys. Looks like I might need to invest in an old iPad or iPhone soon.. been recommended to get a Retina model so I can test the higher resolution. 

I'm also interested in the differences between compiling for Android and iOS and the general development experience also in terms of launching the app into the marketplace. So far i've got part way through building the project for Android but hit a few errors that I havent made time to solve yet, focusing on getting the app working as I want it on the desktop first. 

#6

If you already have an Android device, then I'd do that first (not least bcause there are iOS/Android updates in the next few months, so you'd might as well go with what you have for now.).

My mileage differs.

BTW, I built for iOS once, but found it a PIA because Apple made it that way (permissions/certificates etc). I've had no problems buildng for Android (dev platform Windows).