At Thirdbridge, the preferred development approach is hybrid. But let's delve deeper by comparing hybrid and native development across key stages of application development: costs, performance, security, and maintenance.
What is hybrid and native development?
Firstly, Hybrid development allows creating a mobile application with a common code base for the two major platforms, iOS and Android. By leveraging frameworks like React Native or Flutter, which wrap common code in a native layer, one can quickly create a functional application on both operating systems.
Native development involves creating applications specific to an operating system, mostly iOS or Android. With this method, development utilizes tools and technologies provided by the developers of these operating systems.
Costs
One of the primary reasons for choosing hybrid development is the savings in time and money. Having a single code base practically reduces the expenses of a complete team, implying savings in development time costs of 40% to 50%!
Faster development can also mean much quicker time to market. Thus, returns on investment are accessible much sooner.
Regarding maintenance, it is also possible to optimize costs when setting up the continuous deployment process, i.e., to create deliverables for users or testers.
Performance
Historically, native applications have been reputed for their robustness, designed specifically for an operating system with tools and technologies tailored to that ecosystem. Hybrid frameworks add a layer of communication between native and hybrid layers, which slightly slows down performance.
However, significant efforts have been made within the React Native community to improve performance in recent years. A completely new "bridgeless" architecture was announced in 2022, and today, this new architecture is the default for new projects.
Security
When comparing the security of native and hybrid applications, it is crucial to understand the fundamental differences between these approaches.
Native applications, developed specifically for platforms like iOS or Android, benefit from direct access to native APIs and built-in security features of the operating system. Thus, implementation is finer, and protection against vulnerabilities is enhanced.
While the hybrid approach is more flexible and time-saving, it can also pose more challenges in terms of security. Hybrid applications often depend on third-party libraries to access native features, which can introduce risks if these libraries are not properly maintained or secured.
Native applications generally remain more robust in terms of security due to their direct and complete access to the security features of operating systems. However, the security of hybrid applications can be greatly improved through secure development practices, rigorous dependency checking, and continuous monitoring of vulnerabilities.
Maintenance
Native applications, developed specifically for platforms like iOS or Android, entail increased maintenance complexity. Each update or bug fix must be implemented separately for each platform, requiring specialized teams and increasing development costs and time.
In contrast, hybrid solutions like Flutter and React Native offer a unified approach to mobile development, allowing a significant portion of code to be shared across platforms. Thus, a single team is sufficient to address maintenance.
Thanks to the use of a single code base, if a bug is introduced in the application, the fix can be applied simultaneously to both environments. This is much more efficient during feature updates because there is no need to juggle between multiple ecosystems.
Therefore, the decision to opt for a native or hybrid development approach for a mobile application will primarily depend on the specific priorities and unique needs of the project in question. It is crucial to carefully balance security considerations, which are often a major concern in application development, with the economic and practical advantages offered by both approaches. In other words, it's about determining which aspects are most critical to the project's success and making an informed choice based on these priorities.
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