History of React Native
React Native, a JavaScript framework, was developed by Facebook and was first announced at the company’s React.js conference in January 2015. It was initially created to meet Facebook’s internal needs for a more efficient and agile way to develop mobile applications for multiple platforms.
Since its release, React Native has gained immense popularity and community support, resulting in a rich ecosystem of libraries and tools. It has been adopted by many large companies and startups alike for building cross-platform mobile applications.
Why choose React Native?
Cross-Platform Development
React Native enables developers to build mobile applications that can run on both iOS and Android platforms with a single codebase. This significantly reduces development time and effort compared to building separate native apps for each platform. Developers can leverage code sharing, reuse components, and maintain a consistent user experience across platforms.
Hot Reloading and Fast Iteration
React Native offers a feature called “Hot Reloading,” which allows developers to see the changes made in the code instantly without restarting the app. This speeds up the development process and enables fast iteration, as developers can quickly test and refine their code changes. The ability to iterate rapidly improves productivity and reduces development cycles.
Native Modules
You can write custom native modules in Swift, Objective-C, Java, or Kotlin when you need to optimize specific aspects of your app.
UI Components
React Native provides a wide range of pre-built UI components that speed up the development process.
Familiarity with ReactJS
React Native is based on ReactJS, a popular JavaScript library for building user interfaces. Thanks to React’s component-based architecture, many design elements and components can be reused not only across iOS and Android platforms but also in web development.
Ease of Maintenance
One codebase makes it easier to maintain and update the app, requiring fewer developers and less time.
Comparing React Native with other technologies
Prefer React Native for Cross-Platform Mobile Applications
It allows developers to write the core logic of the app in JavaScript and reuse it across both iOS and Android platforms, saving time and resources. React Native provides a rich ecosystem of libraries and plugins, which means you can add native functionality without having to write platform-specific code. It uses native components, offering a near-native performance and look-and-feel for the user interface.
Prefer Kotlin for Android Development
Kotlin is officially supported by Google for Android development, ensuring that it is well-integrated and up-to-date with the latest Android features. Its modern language constructs like null safety and coroutines make for more robust and efficient applications. Kotlin’s concise syntax allows developers to write clean, readable code, speeding up the development process. Its full interoperability with Java enables seamless integration into existing Android projects, making it easier to adopt without starting from scratch.
Prefer Java for Android Applications with Legacy parts:
Java has served as the cornerstone language for Android development ever since the operating system’s debut. Its mantra of “Write Once, Run Anywhere” guarantees that Java-based apps can operate seamlessly across diverse Android devices, irrespective of hardware disparities. The expansive and seasoned ecosystem of Java offers a wide range of libraries and tools, simplifying the process of app development. Furthermore, Google’s dedicated IDE for Android, Android Studio, is designed with a focus on Java, providing developers with a robust set of tools to expedite app development. Java can be utilized in conjunction with Kotlin (that is built over the Android framework, originally Java-based) to write certain portions of the code, enhancing the flexibility and versatility of Android app development.
Prefer Swift for iOS Development
It’s specifically designed with performance in mind, often outperforming Objective-C for CPU-intensive tasks. Swift’s modern syntax and language features like optional types and generics make it safer and less prone to errors, enhancing code quality. It integrates seamlessly with existing Objective-C codebases and Apple libraries, allowing for easier adoption in ongoing projects. Swift’s backed by Apple, ensuring that it will stay up-to-date and optimized for iOS development, with full access to new iOS features as they’re released.
Our cases
Implementing Real-Time Sample Tracking Application
Domain: Healthcare | Lab Sample Management
In this case, React Native’s flexibility was harnessed to create an innovative mobile application for providing accurate, real-time query information on the last known location of samples, ensuring no sample is misplaced or delayed in transit, regardless of its location.
React Native, with its single, unified codebase, was chosen to develop a robust mobile application that could efficiently track samples on both Android and iOS platforms, thereby reducing development effort and time. This decision was based on the client’s need for a universally adaptable solution and the project’s specific requirements for real-time tracking.
The system integrates a barcode scanner, which serves as the main trigger for the tracking process, allowing trial managers and sponsors to seamlessly track samples from any site to their ultimate delivery destination. This integration was made possible by React Native’s ability to interface efficiently with native modules.
Creating a Groundbreaking Mobile Application for Cryptocurrency Tax Management
Domain: Blockchain | Taxation | Fintech
This case demonstrated the power and flexibility of React Native in the realm of cross-platform mobile application development. Serving as the core framework for the app, React Native enabled the creation of a tool that streamlined the cryptocurrency tax calculation process. With its capability to support a unified codebase for both iOS and Android, the workflow was expedited by 30%, allowing users to complete tax reports within just 20 minutes. React Native’s multilingual functionality was also utilized, supporting five languages for enhanced accessibility across mobile and web applications.
