Significant React Native Developer Tools to consider for Mobile App Development!

Significant React Native Developer Tools to consider for Mobile App Development!
react native app development services
React Native is one of the most loved and popular frameworks for mobile app development. The reasons are manifold! To begin with, React Native enables cross-platform app development; the code is highly reusable across the Android & iOS platforms. Moreover, React Native projects are cost-efficient and the end products can be deployed much faster as compared to most other options. Also, the learning curve is lower than in other frameworks. Speed, budget-friendliness, and ease of development – What more can app creators ask for? To add to these goodies, the React Native ecosystem also offers loads of handy tools and IDEs that make app development a breeze. This post explores the offerings of the major React Native developer tools that play a vital role in saving the time and effort of development teams.

Top React Native Developer Tools

react native developer tools

Redux

Redux is a free-source JavaScript-based tool used for UI creation and state management in React Native and React applications. It also helps developers with the functions of live code editing, time-traveling debugging, and app testing.
Redux is a small-sized utility containing dependencies and is easy to test. Since its file size is just 2KB, this tool functions well with view libraries including React. Redux can be operated across various development settings like front-end, back-end, native platforms, etc.
Redux proves handy in managing data in large-scale and complex React Native applications. React apps store information within the local State and transfer this information from parent components to the child components using props (properties). In larger apps, this architecture becomes difficult to handle. Here, Redux comes into the picture.
Check out the data flow mechanism in Redux.
react native app development
State: The application’s “State” is an object tree within one single store. The “State” is the single source of truth that drives the app and describes the app’s condition at any given point in time. But the “State” is read-only and the only way to modify it is through “Actions”.
Actions: “Actions” refer to the events that take place within an app as a result of user input. The “Actions” send payload information from the app to the store. “Actions” are the single source of information that reaches the store. So, if the state needs any modifications, they will be executed through “Actions.”
Reducers: “Reducers” are pure functions that carry out changes to the “State.” Whenever an action gets triggered for state change, “Reducers” make the necessary modifications to the previous “State” and return the new “State” with the updated value.
Store: The “Store” holds all states together in an app. Remember to use only one “Store” for the entire app if you’re using Redux as the practice of multiple stores doesn’t work here.
Components: Here lies the User Interface of the app. A declarative description of the user interface based on the app’s present “State” is called a “View”. The app renders the UI as per the “State.” So, the UI gets re-rendered whenever there a new “State” forms.

Android Studio

Android Studio is an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) based on Java & Intellij IDEA. It provides React Native developer tools for the Android OS along with code editing utilities.
Android Studio’s key offerings include an advanced database inspector, visual layout editor, smart code editor, a flexible build system, APK analyzer, real-time profilers, etc. It also supports Kotlin DSL in the Android Gradle plugin and enables an Android emulator to run inside the Android Studio.
This tool is very useful for code editing and helps React Native developers in code creation, analysis and refraction. Here, it uses its feature of “instant Push” for pushing the code and making the necessary modifications while the app is running.
React Native app development projects using Android Studio has one or more modalities along with the source code and resource files. The modalities offer several modules including Library modules, Android app modules, & Google App Engine modules.

Xcode

Xcode is an Apple-created IDE & code editor designed to help with the development of iOS mobile apps, desktop applications for macOS, etc. This tool comprises a complete development environment and offers a set of integrated tools. These integrated tools help in carrying out various tasks including development, testing, debugging, app compilation, and deployment. Xcode is a good pick for iOS app development in React Native and also for installing and debugging the iOS package.
Using Xcode, developers can view more real-time information about the Build process and can create custom Build configurations. For instance, Xcode allows you to pick your preferred simulator device, customized Build scheme, etc. The React Native CLI runs certain functionalities of Xcode with the help of the scripting code under the hood. With the CLI, one can effortlessly run and build the code using just a single command line. However, if you use only the CLI, unexpected Build-related issues are likely to crop up. Here comes the role of Xcode. It allows you to directly get clear visibility of the issue and identify its root cause.

Expo

Expo is one of the most effective React Native Developer tools. It proves immensely beneficial and facilitates faster deployment for projects involving cross-platform apps in React Native. This open-source tool provides the Expo SDK library, a wide range of React Native components, and native APIs that support Android & iOS platforms. Expo is well documented and boasts of a Slack community and other community forums.
Expo offers a wide range of native APIs for Android and iOS app development. Some of the native abilities offered by the Expo bundle are camera, location, file system, social authentication, push notifications, etc. This way, developers enjoy direct API access and can easily add native features to the software.
In cross-platform app development, 95% of the code can be reused across the Android and iOS platforms. Yet some native coding is needed; the amount of native coding required depends on your use case. Here, Expo simplifies native coding by managing the entire code behind the scenes without the need for developers to be familiar with native mobile code. Besides, there’s a utility called Expo Snacks. It enables React Native developers to create the code directly into the browser and preview it as well.
Using Expo, one can directly preview the code by just scanning a QR code. This proves helpful during conducting app demos for customers; you can simply use a QR code instead of employing APKs or TestFlight builds.
The Expo container app allows developers to directly conduct the testing on the device. With Expo, there isn’t any need to publish all updates to the app store as there is no native code involved. As such, you can quickly publish updates to an app.

Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is one of the most robust React Native Developer tools as it blends the simplicity of a source code editor with robust developer tools like IntelliSense code completion & debugging. This is a free and open-source code editor developed by Microsoft and has been written in JavaScript, TypeScript & Cascading Style Sheets. This powerful tool caters to an environment of extensions. It supports technologies like TypeScript, JavaScript, Java, & Node.js.; programming languages like Python, C #, PHP, C++, Go, etc.; and runtimes such as Unity & .NET. Visual Studio Code is compatible with all major platforms including Windows, Mac, and Linux.
It offers a plethora of built-in features like Debugging Codes, Smart Coding with IntelliSense, Built-in Git Command, code refactoring, understanding of rich semantic code, Customizable themes, and many more. With Visual Studio Code, you can reap the benefits of a frictionless edit-build-debug cycle. It integrates with the build as well as the scripting tools to speed up the workflow of regular tasks. This saves you the time and effort wasted in fiddling with your development environment and you can focus on innovation. Its support for Git allows developers to work with source control without having to leave the editor.
Visual Studio Code helps development teams to productively execute tasks like auto-indentation, syntax highlighting, box selection, bracket-matching, snippets, etc. Moreover, the tool offers functionalities like an intuitive keyboard shortcut and enables easy customization and keyboard shortcut mapping; so that developers can effortlessly navigate their code. Furthermore, Visual Studio Code provides an interactive debugger that assists you in stepping through the source code, inspecting the variables, viewing call stacks, and executing console-related commands.

React Native CLI

React Native CLI is an MIT-licensed utility offered by the React Native framework itself. It is used for bootstrapping a React Native application from the command line using an innovative approach. React Native CLI helps developers to interact with the native layer of the application. This utility is used for debugging functions and automating processes such as running the packager, creating apps, connecting apps, etc. React Native CLI enables customizations as well. For instance, you can install an RN project using this tool even if the project has been set up using packages like TypeScript or boilerplates.

React Native Tools

This Microsoft-created free tool is an extension of Visual Studio Code and assists development teams with React Native app development as well as debugging. It is considered to be one of the best options for debugging among React Native Developer tools. With React Native Tools, you can debug React components and React Native styles. Developers can take a back seat during the code debugging process as their job is done by the commands generated by this tool. These commands help in running the react-native command; a ‘command palette’ is used for this purpose.

React Navigation

React Navigation helps in executing & navigating the ‘navigation’ function in an RN application. It is coded using JavaScript & is easy to use. This tool contains a chain of navigators that are used to define the screen flow of an app. Navigators such as Tab, Stack, Drawers, etc. help developers to create navigation routes in native applications.
Using this tool, you don’t need to employ native navigation APIs directly on iOS & Android apps. This is because React Navigation reconstructs certain subsections of these APIs. As such, the process of debugging becomes simpler and you can customize it as per your need. Also, developers can integrate third-party JavaScript plugins without having to be well-versed in various programming languages like Java, Kotlin, Objective-C, Swift, etc.
React Native Navigation is a substitute for React Navigation designed to cater to cross-platform app development with React Native. This tool employs native navigation APIs directly on iOS and Android imparting a natural look and feel to the app. This tool manages presentations and the transitions taking place between screens. React Native Navigation provides multiple customization options and extensible platforms. Developers knowing how to write apps in JavaScript can customize any portion of the tool as per the requirement. Also, developers can create their own navigators and replace the user-facing API.

React Native Debugger

React Native Debugger is one of the most effective debugging tools for React Native development, especially when developers are already using Redux. It is a stand-alone desktop app that is compatible with Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, etc. Its USP is that it can be combined with Redux tools as well. This tool assists with UI designing and provides clear visibility of the visual elements on the screen. This way, you can thoroughly examine the visual elements present on the screen and make the necessary modifications without much ado. With React Native Debugger, the processes of app development & debugging become speedier and all the more productive.

Adobe XD

Adobe XD offers several UI/UX designing tools including prototype designing, real-time code editing, etc. This tool proves handy in creating the UI/UX of mobile and web applications.
Adobe XD comes with features like flexible artboards, Repeat Grid, etc. that reduce designers’ time and efforts considerably. It is capable of handling complicated design systems & symbol libraries. Adobe XD provides intuitive tools that help you to easily connect screens. You can also employ low-fidelity wireframes to create interactive prototypes. These capabilities can be leveraged to carry out user testing without the need for any coding.
With Adobe XD, the task of switching from static layouts to dynamic prototypes can be carried out with just a single click. Therefore, one can easily modify designs as required.
Using the “auto-animate” feature, it becomes easier to prototype rich interactions as it automatically animates micro-interactions present across the Adobe XD artboards.

Some other Notable React Native Developer Tools

Ignite

Ignite is a free and open-source React/React Native toolchain that consists of sections of codes, plugins, and boilerplates. With Ignite, developers can access multiple boilerplates; they enjoy the flexibility to select the boilerplate from various supporting plugins. The boilerplates support cross-platform development across the iOS and Android platforms.
The other offerings of Ignite include customizable themes, components, etc. and API testing services, and so on. The latest offering is Ignite Bowser which employs MobX-State-Tree for the tasks of state management, React Navigation, etc. It provides generators for models, components, etc.

Nuclide

Nuclide is a customized IDE that facilitates code improvements. This free & open-source React Native developer tool offers functionalities like Hack development, Remote development, JavaScript development, mercurial support, in-built debugging, context view, task runner, debugger, working sets, and many more. Developers can benefit from the feature of “Code diagnostics” for developing JavaScript and generating the details of errors or issues whenever the code fails. Using Nuclide, you can make the app powerful and scalable.

Vasern

Vasern is an open-source & lightweight data storage utility that improves the storage capacity in React Native iOS applications. This tool comes with a native engine to facilitate native performance. It can create a local database in just five minutes. However, Vasern is still in its formative stages, although its Alpha version is working quite effectively.

Flow

Flow is one of those few React Native developer tools that offer programming advantages and static typing. This tool is open-source and free. Flow’s offerings include real-time feedback, ease of integration, type inference services, customizable JavaScript, etc. With Flow, developers can be assured of an easy-going, reliable, and fast coding process. This tool also monitors the errors within the code by using static typing annotations.

Flipper

Flipper is an excellent React Native tool for debugging Android and iOS apps. This dynamic debugging tool works wonders to enhance your coding productivity. This tool allows you to visualize, examine as well as control your React Native mobile applications from a plain desktop interface. Flipper can be used as it is or can be extended with the help of the plugin API. This tool extends its support to most operating systems including Windows, Linux, and Mac. Flipper’s offerings are Network Logging, console logs, Hermes Debugger, Layout Inspecting for UI creation assistance, etc. With Flipper, you can build your own customized plugins as per the project requirements.

Bottomline:

These tools and IDEs are valuable resources for React Native app development teams as they simplify tasks and save development time. These amazing tools lead to the creation of robust and performant applications. Most importantly, the correct usage of these tools guarantees faster time-to-market. However, to leverage the full potential of these React Native Developer tools, one must know when to use them and how to employ them. So, if you are a novice in this arena, it is advisable to seek technical assistance from professional React Native app development services to execute your project.

Compatible Frontend-Backend Pairings to Consider for App Development Projects!

Compatible Frontend-Backend Pairings to Consider for App Development Projects!
react app development company in USA
Would you like to ensure a productive SDLC (software development lifecycle) and deliver an impeccable & performant software end-product? Well, the most important aspect in this regard is picking the right technology stack that best suits your project requirements. Here, picking the aptest front-end & back-end development technologies play a vital role. The front end comprises the presentation layer that is displayed via user screens and is accessible to the end users. The back end refers to the server side that forms the backbone of the application but cannot be accessed or viewed by the end users. For executing most large-scale app/website development projects, you need a sound front-end and back-end combo.
However, today there are numerous technologies, frameworks, programming languages, and tools to choose from. As such, it becomes all the more confusing for entrepreneurs to pick the right tech stack for front-end & back-end development. So, what’s the solution? You need to conduct extensive research, weigh the pros and cons of tech stacks, and match your requirements with all available solutions before you make the final decision.
This post explores the popular front-end backend framework combinations along with their distinct offerings. A quick read will guide you through the decision-making process.
React app development services

1. React & Node.js (Express)



React

React is a Facebook-developed, open-source, and JavaScript-based framework. It has gained popularity as a front-end web development framework. Its key features include component-based architecture, one-way data binding, Virtual DOM, declarative user interface, and JSX.
React app development services have been leveraged by several leading brands such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Netflix, Airbnb, Uber, etc. to create success stories.

Node.js (Express)

Node.js is an open-source Google Chrome-based JS framework created on the V8 engine of JavaScript. Its architecture is single-threaded and event-driven enabling asynchronous non-blocking operations. Here, lesser resources are used as several threads do not have to be created. Despite being single-threaded, Node.js can handle humongous data. Furthermore, the runtime environment of this framework is utilized for developing customized back-ends of applications.

React & Node.js Pairing: Advantages

Now, let’s explore the offerings of React and Node.js as a noteworthy front-end backend combination. This pairing is highly recommended for web app development.

JavaScript Usage for Front-end & Back-end

The React & Node.js duo facilitates using JavaScript for front-end as well as back-end development as both frameworks support JavaScript. And, JavaScript comes with an easy learning curve. This leads to the creation of universal isomorphic applications that run the JavaScript code for both the front-end and backend. In isomorphic apps, the app’s server-side and client-side can communicate with each other more efficiently and speedily.
Also, this combo doesn’t need to use complicated back-end programming languages like Ruby or Python. As such, app developers enjoy the flexibility to build amazing web apps and websites effortlessly.

Coding Advantages

React developers can run the code directly in the Node.js environment as both frameworks are JS-based. Moreover, the React DOM contains components that are highly compatible with Node.js. This results in fewer lines of code and simplifies the process of server-side rendering.

React’s Dependency on Node.js Modules & Utilities

Node.js provides modules that can be used for consolidating the React app into a single file. Another utility feature is the npm (Node Package Manager), a marketplace providing open-source JS tools that one can access easily. npm helps React to identify the native side (Android/iOS) of the packages used in an app so that the necessary dependencies can be added.

JSON API Creation

Node.js’s high code reusability and React’s capability of instant code sharing prove beneficial in creating JSON APIs for web apps. Also, it is easy to integrate JSON files with Node.js; this way users can gain access to the necessary information easily.

Single Page Application (SPA) Development

The React & Express duo is a great pick for developing SEO-friendly single-page applications or SPAs. This pair forms a robust & lightweight backend model that enables smooth & asynchronous data loading via callback functions.

Boosts Scalability & Performance

The Node.js and React.js combo is known for creating modular, data-driven, responsive, dynamic, and scalable web applications. This is because the modular architecture of both of these frameworks speeds up the response time as well as the page load time. Node.js leverages the speed of the V8 engine for handling bulk requests using callback functions. React’s virtual DOM boosts app performance. So, this pair is ideal for building scalable and performant web apps and brings a lot to the table if your website or app is expected to grow with time.

Handles high Server Load

React has been designed to handle heavy internet traffic and together with Node.js, it can cater to multiple requests at a time. Consequently, the apps developed in React and Node.js are capable of handling humongous traffic and managing high server loads and multiple requests simultaneously. Hence, the chances of app crashes are minimal.

MERN Stack Compatibility

MERN Stack is a technology stack that offers a unique dimension to web apps and websites. This stack comprises a combination of React, Express.js, Node.js, and MongoDB. Therefore, the React & Node.js pair is an excellent choice for MERN Stack development.

Saves time and efforts

Node.js & React come with goodies like high code reusability and cross-platform compatibility. Therefore, it becomes easy to create and maintain apps and reduces the time-to-market considerably.

2. React Native & Django

React Native and Django is a popular combo for front-end & back-end development. Take a look at their USPs.

React Native

React Native is an open-source JS-based framework that has been designed by Facebook for developing cross-platform mobile apps. React Native developers need to code once and reuse it across iOS and Android operating systems instead of coding independently for separate platforms. Today, RN support has been extended to desktop and web apps as well. The framework has React.js as its base and enables developers to craft robust apps speedily using their JavaScript skills.
React Native has been utilized by renowned brands like Facebook, Skype, Pinterest, Instagram, Tesla, Bloomberg, Discord, Walmart, etc.

Django

Django, an open-source Python-based high-end framework, is a popular pick for back-end development. This framework is ideal for mid-sized to large-scale apps with a rich feature set.
Django is preferred by businesses due to advantages like easy-going structure, reliability, scalability, etc. Brands such as Spotify, YouTube, Disqus, Instagram, etc. have leveraged Django. It comes with model-template-view architecture. It follows the DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself) approach that speeds up the software development lifecycle. Django employs ORM (Object Relational Mapper) for making CRUD operation calls to the database; it enables developers to design complex functionalities easily. With this dynamic CRUD (Create, Read, Update, & Delete) interface, managing huge data-driven websites becomes much easier. Besides, the presence of Python makes it easy for developers to implement ML algorithms into apps.

React Native & Django Pairing: Advantages

Applications developed in React Native & Django are secure & speedy and involve a cost-effective development process. This pair caters to the app development requirements of all kinds of enterprises – right from small-scale to large-scale ones – and can deal with different amounts of traffic and varying objectives.
This duo is a viable choice if your software development requirements involve cross-platform compatibility. Let’s take the example of web apps that are meant to function across different platforms. Such apps, if developed in React Native & Django, require the least amount of coding, unlike other frameworks.
Django supports plugins of several other frameworks. Hence, the Django-React Native combination works well for app development projects that involve multiple frameworks.

3. Angular & Node.js (Express)

Check out the offerings of the Angular-Node.js combo for front-end & back-end development.

Angular

Angular is a Google-created open-source framework used to develop apps for mobile and desktop. Angular app development services can be used to build performant & responsive apps. Angular is also a good choice for crafting SPAs (single-page applications).
The framework is based on TypeScript and this feature helps developers effortlessly identify bugs while writing the code. As such, writing high-quality code and maintaining the code becomes easier; more so if you are coding a large-scale app in JavaScript.

Angular & Node.js Pairing: Advantages

Angular when combined with Node.js, brings a lot to the table. Both are TypeScript-based frameworks. With Node.js, developers can host an app locally by setting up a simple webserver. With the Angular CLI (Command Line Interface), it becomes easy to handle complex development tasks like the bundling of CSS & JavaScript files and the HTML doc during web hosting.
Node’s “npm,” supports Angular’s CLI; so you need not write the boilerplate manually. Furthermore, Angular CLI employs Webpack for bundling the app. This approach helps to hide the complexities likely during app bundling and this way proves helpful for newbie Angular developers.

4. Vue & Laravel

Here’s another popular pair for front-end & back-end development – Vue & Laravel.

Vue

Vue is an open-source JS framework that is used for creating the view layer of a web-based app, particularly in a single-page application. This is a progressive front-end framework and is based on MVVM architecture. Thanks to its virtual DOM, Vue is speedy and requires minimal resources. It involves an easy learning curve; developers well-versed in JavaScript & HTML can effortlessly master Vue. Vue’s two-way data binding approach allows you to maintain the consistency of your data across the front end and back end. Moreover, the framework can effortlessly integrate with various libraries and frameworks.

Laravel

Laravel, an open-source PHP-based framework, is a preferred pick for web app development. It is one of the most loved back-end frameworks and comes with a host of in-built features and handy development tools. Thanks to Laravel’s MVC architecture, you can develop large-scale feature-rich apps that are easy-going, scalable, and flexible. It has an ORM called Eloquent that enables developers to interact with objects instead of SQL. Laravel offers the Artisan command line that produces handy commands to help with functions like boilerplate code generation and cache clearance. The other offerings of Laravel include automatic package delivery, the Blade Template Engine, advanced routing, robust security, and seamless Database migration capabilities.

Vue & Laravel Pairing: Advantages

The Vue-Laravel pair is one of the best picks for creating reactive event-driven apps due to Vue’s single-file component approach and Laravel’s event-driven architecture. Such apps are more responsive and do not require continuous data polling. This duo is suitable for SPA development as well. Here, Laravel simplifies handling the authorization and authentication of SPAs while Vue facilitates creating a rich UI.
Laravel is known for its powerful built-in security features that ensure the security of an app. Vue strengthens app security by offering a templating system that can prevent XSS (cross-site scripting attacks).
Using this combo, developers can build web apps very fast without the need for specific database expertise as both of these frameworks make it easy for you to work with databases from inside the code. Also, you can keep your database clean and organized without having to write a lot many new codes. Furthermore, Laravel’s Schema Builder or Laravel Migrations make database migration a breeze. Modifications can be made without having to write much SQL manually. With Vue and Laravel, serverless deployment becomes easier and more cost-effective.


Final Thoughts:

I hope the aforementioned information will help you to pick the right pair of front-end & back-end development frameworks that perfectly aligns with your project requirements. You must keep in mind that every project is different from the others and comes with its unique set of requirements. Therefore, if your project involves developmental complexities, high-level features, etc.; seek professional advice & assistance from an experienced software development firm.