In cutting-edge, dynamic digital panorama, ensuring seamless user experiences across numerous gadgets is paramount for the success of any software program utility. This is when cross-device testing emerges as an essential approach to quality assurance (QA).
As the era evolves, so do the challenges of ensuring constant performance and functionality across smartphones, drugs, and other gadgets. Whether you are navigating display screen resolutions, tool types, or working device versions, mastering pass-tool testing is vital for producing robust software answers in a modern-day interconnected world.
This blog post delves into effective strategies and pleasant practices for cross-device testing, exploring how QA groups can leverage this technique to beautify application reliability and user pleasure.
What is Cross Device Testing?
Cross-device testing evaluates the functionality of software applications on different devices, including smartphones and tablets. This testing ensures that users get the best experience with their devices, and nothing matters. It considers factors such as screen size, resolution, device type, operating systems, and OS version.
Testing on multiple devices helps identify and resolve compatibility issues early in the software development process, resulting in faster maintenance.
Here are the key aspects of cross-device testing:
- We all recognize that gadgets come with various display screen sizes and resolutions, which can affect how software programs appear. Cross-device testing ensures that the layout and content of software programs are displayed efficaciously on screens of various sizes and resolutions.
- Cross-tool testing also assesses the performance of software programs on distinct gadgets, thinking about factors like processing electricity, memory, and network situations. It assesses compatibility with numerous operating systems, such as iOS and Android.
- Additionally, devices have different input methods, such as touchscreens and keyboards. Cross-device testing verifies that the software application functions correctly with these input methods.
Why Do We Need Cross-Device Testing?
The need for cross-device testing in today’s digital landscape arises from the various devices and operating systems used by users to access software applications.
During testing, you must ensure the application functions appropriately on different devices. Without cross-device testing, users on various devices might encounter issues like distorted or misaligned layouts. These problems typically result from differences in screen sizes and resolutions across smartphones, tablets, foldable devices, and more.
Additionally, eCommerce applications often face challenges due to differences in operating systems. For instance, iOS users might experience different functionalities or encounter bugs that Android users do not. Therefore, cross-device testing is crucial to address these issues.
Top Strategies for Successful Cross-Browser Testing In 2024
Let’s explore the top strategies for simplifying cross-browser testing, faster, higher quality, and more convenient.
1) Choose the right set of Browser & Devices
Choosing the right combination of browsers and devices for cross-browser testing is a significant milestone in the ongoing process.
Start by using your product’s usage data to determine which devices and browsers your customers prefer. After analyzing this data, update the list to reflect the changing preferences in the target market. Once you have a prioritized list of essential browsers and devices, ensure you regularly update it as older devices and browsers are phased out and new ones are introduced.
For accurate results, replace all emulators with real devices.
2) Choose the best UI Test Frameworks
Once you have established the right devices and an updated set of browsers, the next crucial step is choosing a good UI testing framework. A quality UI testing framework can simplify browser testing and help you develop high-performance applications.
It’s essential to select a framework by carefully analyzing and understanding the needs of your product and team.
3) Make use of Automation and Parallel Testing
Automating Selenium tests is essential for improving test execution time for cross-browser testing. Additionally, parallel testing makes cross-browser testing complete and productive. For instance, testing a combination of 10 different browsers and devices with a test case that takes 10 minutes to execute would take 100 minutes sequentially.
However, with parallel testing, the entire task only takes 10 minutes. Thus, parallel testing allows you to test multiple browsers and devices quickly, while Selenium Grid enables running test cases in several environments simultaneously.
Combining these two approaches optimizes cross-browser testing. You can further streamline this process with a CI/CD pipeline using continuous integration, allowing test cycles to be executed earlier and more frequently due to regular commits to a centralized repository.
4) Cross-device testing on the Cloud
Leveraging cloud-based testing platforms grants access to an extensive range of real devices, offering a convenient way to evaluate your app. This approach is particularly beneficial for testing software applications across various devices, eliminating the need for personal procurement or management. To address the challenges of cross-device testing and provide a cost-effective solution for testing applications on multiple devices, adopting a cloud-based testing platform is the optimal choice, removing the necessity for internal device maintenance.
AI-powered test execution platforms like LambdaTest offer an online device farm with over 3000 real devices, browsers, and platforms. They enable testing on both real devices and a virtual device cloud of Android emulators and iOS simulators.
During real device cloud testing, you can access essential debugging tools such as network logs, device logs, app logs, videos, and screenshots, providing comprehensive insights into your app’s performance. Testing your apps is straightforward – simply upload the .abb, .apk, or .ipa files, or install production apps directly from the Google Play Store or App Store.
5) Choose a highly scalable testing platform
Achieving cross-browser compatibility requires addressing dynamic market demands, which can be accomplished by having a mobile device lab capable of easily adding and removing devices based on project needs. The variety of browser versions, operating systems, and device models is highly unpredictable. Therefore, your device lab must be highly scalable, allowing devices to be added or removed according to project requirements without impacting the lab’s other functionalities.
6) Be Flexible and Allow Customization
To thrive in the highly dynamic application industry, a platform that is always service-ready is essential. This means having flexible hardware and software integrations that allow for customizations at any time. A constantly evolving user base with ever-changing demands directly influences the application industry. Therefore, ensure that your product is adaptable to future customer requirements and can deliver quality products on time.
7) Make use of AI-powered testing tools
No matter how much you try, eliminating all errors or bugs from a software application is impossible. However, you can significantly reduce their occurrence to achieve high-quality results. SaaS product organizations strive to use advanced technologies like continuous integration and DevOps to attain faster and more qualitative outcomes. AI can further accelerate this process by offering codeless solutions, significantly reducing the time and effort required from QA teams.
Additionally, AI and machine learning can decrease test case flakiness, enabling consistent automation efforts and minimizing the need for human intervention.
8) Meet the security requirements of the business
Today, the mobile and software application industry encompasses nearly all sectors. Organizations in the banking and insurance domains that rely on applications are particularly susceptible to security breaches and online malpractices. Therefore, ensuring that you are using a product that meets all your security requirements and is certified security-compliant to ensure smooth and successful business operations is crucial.
Here are some practices that you can follow:
- Integrate Browser Specific Workarounds
- Testing in Different Network Conditions
- Responsive Design Testing
- Testing with Browser Developer Tools
- Accessibility Testing
Best Cross Devices Testing Tools in 2024
To conduct cross-device testing effectively, choosing the best tool that guarantees high-quality software development is essential. However, identifying the right tool can be a significant challenge. Here are some of the most popular cross-device testing tools available:
1) LambdaTest:
LambdaTest is an AI-powered platform designed for test orchestration and execution. It enables testing of web and mobile apps across real devices, browsers, and platform combinations. It allows developers and testers to perform both manual and automated testing of web and mobile applications on a scalable cloud grid. The platform supports the automation of test scripts using various testing frameworks, such as Playwright, Appium, Espresso, XCUITest, and others.
2) Appium:
Appium is an open-source automation testing tool for Android and iOS apps. It is a highly effective tool for testing web and mobile applications, including hybrid apps. Appium enables automated functional testing, enhancing the overall functionality of mobile applications.
3) Espresso:
Espresso, a widely used testing framework developed by Google, automates Android applications. It offers a concise and reliable approach to writing UI tests for Android apps, providing a rich set of APIs like ViewMatchers and ViewActions. These APIs enable developers to perform various UI interactions and assertions seamlessly.
4) XCUITest:
XCUITest, an Apple UI checking-out framework, is used to try out apps on iPhones and iPads. It permits developers and testers to create automatic checks in Swift or Objective-C, simulating user interactions with the app’s interface and validating its capability.
End Note
Implementing effective go-device testing strategies is crucial for ensuring the pleasantness and reliability of software packages in today’s numerous device landscape. By leveraging the proper equipment, automating check scripts, and prioritizing both manual and automatic testing, QA teams can perceive and resolve troubles across diverse devices and systems.
Staying modern-day with the latest testing frameworks and constantly refining checking-out strategies will similarly decorate the effectiveness of move-device testing. A complete and strategic approach to move-tool testing will lead to an advanced person reveling in far better, dependable software.