Android Development

Android has come from nowhere in September 2008 to reach 350,000 activations per day in Feburary 2011, making it the fastest growing platform for smartphones.

This speedy growth and aggressive product roadmap coupled with a lower cost entry point for consumers mean that the Android platform should not be ignored.

Solvd mobile skills will allow you as a business to get your ideas or company into this rapidly expanding marketplace.

Android Development Process

Once the mock-ups and designs are approved the designers use a tool to create the initial UI element layouts as XML (rather like creating XAML for Windows Phone 7). Icons and UI elements are created in Photoshop for each screen to complement the application and fit with the Android development and style guides.

This UI XML is transferred into the development environment where developers create the page flows and user interaction software that glues the application together and brings it to life.

An iterative development process adds small chunks of functionality one step at a time with the developers testing as they progress.
Testing is also performed via the built in Android simulator that can mimic different hardware platforms.

Once the application is functionally complete a “polish-test-polish” phase is performed to ensure consistency across the entire application.

Videos from the simulator are passed to the customer for their approval and so they can see how the app interacts as well as looks.

The app is then tested on real target hardware and submitted to the Android marketplace for approval.