What is cross platform development framework?
A cross-platform app development framework is a set of tools that allows you to build native or native-like apps for multiple platforms such as Android, iOS, Windows and Web with a single codebase.
The cross platform framework options we have in the tech world.
- React Native — Launched in 2015, React Native is Facebook’s open-source cross-platform mobile app development framework. It uses JavaScript and React.js libraries to build apps for Android, iOS, Mac, Windows and the Web.
React Native is based on Facebook’s JavaScript library React, which renders to native platform UI. React Native is a great choice for simple apps where the APIs have a clear bridge between platforms. However, for complex apps, native code is often needed to bridge any gaps in functionality.
2.Xamarin — Launched in 2011 and acquired by Microsoft in 2016, Xamarin is an open-source cross-platform app development framework that uses C# language, .Net framework and Visual Studio to build apps for Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows (UWP).
Xamarin offers great compile-time checking which allows developers to experience fewer run-time errors. Xamarin also makes it easy to design a native-like app with its native friendly interface and controls assisting.
3. Flutter — Developed and released by Google in 2017, Flutter is a popular open source and free cross-platform framework. It uses Dart language to develop apps for Android, iOS, Mac, Windows, Linux , Google Fuchsia and the Web from a single codebase.
Flutter apps are written in the Dart language and make use of many of the language’s more advanced features.
On Windows, macOS, and Linux Flutter runs in the Dart virtual machine, which features a just-in-time execution engine. While writing and debugging an app, Flutter uses Just In Time compilation, allowing for “hot reload”, with which modifications to source files can be injected into a running application
4.Cordova — Apache Cordova (formerly PhoneGap) is an open source framework that utilizes HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to build hybrid web apps for Android, iOS and Windows.
Apache Cordova is the open source fork of the PhoneGap project which was acquired by Adobe in 2011. Adobe later discontinued PhoneGap in 2020.
Apps built with Cordova are hybrid, meaning that they are neither truly native nor purely Web-based. Cordova enables wrapping up of HTML, CSS and JavaScript depending upon the platform of the device.
5.CodeName one — Created by the co-founders of the LWUIT project in 2012, Codename One is the leading open source Write Once Run Anywhere (WORA) framework to build native apps for iOS, Android, Desktop and Web with Java or Kotlin.
Codename One is a revolutionary mobile development solution started by ex-Sun Microsystems developers based on the work that started within Sun.
6. Iconic — Released in 2013, Ionic open-source framework leverages web technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with integrations for frameworks such as Angular, React and Vue to build hybrid mobile, desktop, and Progressive Web Apps.
Ionic framework uses a SaaS UI and is fundamentally built on Cordova. It uses Cordova and Capacitor plugins to gain access to native OS features such as Camera, GPS, Flashlight, etc.
7. NativeScript — Released in 2015, NativeScript is an open-source framework that allows you to build native Android and iOS apps using JavaScript, TypeScript, Angular or Vue.js.
NativeScript allows developers to access native Android and iOS APIs and render platform-native UI. While the app source code is written in web languages, NativeScript apps run directly on the native device without using WebViews or DOM manipulation.
Now, why Flutter is the best in my opinion
- It’s all Widgets” principle offers countless possibilities.
- Fast testing with hot reload, the best you could get in the market.
- The architecture of Flutter is basically built on Dart programming language. This language uses Skia C++ engine which allows it to incorporate high-end graphics as the engine is open-source.
- It is preferred for hybrid app development as the framework can be easily embedded into the existing mobile applications
- Since Flutter utilizes Dart programming language, mobile developers commonly use the DartPub as a package manager because it contains many reusable packages and libraries. When choosing any plugin, you can see not only its popularity but also the code’s health and maintenance.
- Since the framework is powered by Google, the developers get an added access to Google’s Firebase development platform
- Flutter is the Future, growing faster than you can imagine and the communities is big enough even on twitter
