Offshore Dedicated Team of 100 QA Testers and Developers at 40% Lower Cost

What Is a Dedicated Software Development Team Model? A dedicated development team is a partnership between a client and outsourced developers. This kind of model works like having your own in-house team, but without the extra hassle, like administrative, HR, tax, and social benefits issues. You can focus on important business tasks while your dedicated development team takes care of the rest. Areas of Responsibility Your Software Development Vendor: hire skilled talents for the software development project build dedicated team for the project plan software development resources and workflow set up an effective communication between the dedicated software development team and you equip and supply infrastructure for the dedicated team seamless transfer knowledge and roles within the project Your Company: approve the members of a dedicated team monitor the product development provide feedback and reviews to the dedicated development team accept the software development results if they meet your expectations Hire dedicated offshore developers from Belitsoft to reveal your full business capacity. Talk directly to our specialist on building a dedicated development team. The Structure of a Dedicated Development Team A highly performing dedicated software development team comprises specialists with strong professional skills, motivation to achieve the goal, transparent communication, and a clear understanding of their roles and duties. The dedicated development team typically includes the roles agreed for a specific project. In practice, this structure may differ. A dedicated team includes: Front-end engineers. Companies hire dedicated front-end developers if they want to get experts who code and test the elements and functionality of the user interface—the “visible” part of the product. Back-end engineers. When you need experts who are to develop the inner part and the background components, you can hire dedicated backend developers. DevOps. If your processes require the involvement of skilled professionals who specialize in coordination of software development, IT operations, and testing, hire dedicated DevOps engineers. UX/UI designers. Specialists who make the user experience simple, intuitive, and engaging. QA engineers. Software product businesses often use a dedicated testing team model to ensure the optimal quality and bug-free functioning of their main assets. Project managers. The team leaders who mitigate risks, plan, manage, track, and optimize the entire development process. Responsible for delivering project requirements to the dedicated team and reporting to the client. Business analysts. The mediator between the development team and the business. They determine requirements, evaluate processes, make reports, and offer suggestions to CEOs, business owners, and other stakeholders. The dedicated development team size varies based on your specific needs. We can start a project with 1-2 specialists, adding more along with the project evolution. We have also built dedicated development teams of 100+ developers and IT experts in an extended period for our clients. Dedicated Development Team Services Custom web and mobile development Testing and QA UX/UI design Data backup and migration services Product engineering services Big Data analytics Remote hosting services for IT infrastructure Maintenance and support for IT infrastructure When You Should Hire Dedicated Development Team Early-stage startups Assemble the required dedicated software team quickly for an early-stage startup with growth aspirations. Hire dedicated developers to save money and speed up the software development process without resorting to full-time in-house developers. Large projects with changing scope To skip a time-consuming recruiting process and build a professional dedicated team quickly, opt to hiring a dedicated software development team for large growing projects. Optimize the working processes by assigning more important, business-oriented tasks to the in-house staff and forward additional work to the remote team. New product launch Hiring a dedicated software development team is an effective way to create and launch a new product. In case your company lacks technical specialists with the enforced skills. So you have to spend a lot of time recruiting. It results in product launch delays. When you decide to work with an outsourcing software development vendor, it speeds the recruitment of a professional dedicated team. Business scaling While your business enlarges, it demands more dedicated developers. Connect to those companies with access to a large pool of proficient engineers. They can supply rapidly extra resources and adjust them to your existing procedures, while offering a thorough experience for every stage of development. Lack of unique skills When there’s a realm that requires specific expertise you don’t have inside your company, or you need to engage specialists who may be limited in your region. With a dedicated development team model, all talents are available to you worldwide. Urgent need for scaling the development capacity An increased scope or unexpected changes to your current development team may cause difficulties with handling the project. Hiring dedicated development teams is an alternative solution, it saves you time and effort on recruitment and HR processes, while providing a functional line-up immediately. When You Should Not Hire Dedicated Development Team Short and middle-term projects If your project is not large and has well-defined requirements, it may not be urgent to hire a dedicated development team. More likely, you need an in-house team to carry out the outlined tasks. For short-term projects, a fixed-price model is suitable, whereas the Time & Material approach is appropriate for medium-term projects. Projects with a full defined scope Projects with well-defined requirements and a rational plan of execution don't demand a dedicated development team. The choice between a fixed-price or Time & Material model should be based on the size and scope of the project. Short overlap time with the vendor Most outsourcing vendors work in different countries. So you need to choose the one that offers convenient working conditions in terms of availability and response time. Agree with your prospective vendor about the minimal overlap period. Otherwise, the working process won’t be smooth. How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Dedicated Development Team? The pricing model in a dedicated development team is quite simple. Every member has a monthly salary. Just as you pay your in-house workforce, you pay remote workers monthly as well. Plus, the vendor’s fee for administrative, overhead, and infrastructure expenses. The total cost of your project depends on the duration and scope. No extra expenses such as renting an office for a dedicated team, purchasing equipment, paying taxes, electricity bills, taking care of sick leaves, etc. Benefits Of Hiring Dedicated Development Team Hiring a dedicated team with Belitsoft ensures you control the development while we guarantee smooth integration with other teams in your company. Access to global talent Hire dedicated developers at Belitsoft and select skilled experts from a wide talent pool. Do not be limited to the experts within your city. Get a wide range of technology expertise. Make your business agile and your products versatile through outsourcing vendors with talents in mobile apps and web apps, blockchain, IoT, and AI. Time & resources savings on hiring Collaborating with outsourcing vendors, you skip the expensive recruitment process. Bring in talents hand-picked on your requirements for your particular project. The dedicated development team model implies your participation in hiring as well. Your role is to select the best candidates from the shortlist suggested by the vendor. Benefit from a quick and simple software development staff augmentation. Transparent and effective management Effective communication is key to the success of an outsourcing model. With tools such as Skype, Basecamp, JIRA, and GoToMeeting, you keep informed and in control of the project's progress. Regular communication and collaboration between the client and the development team ensure transparency, boost productivity, and create a smooth workflow. Flexibility in time, materials, and scalability With a dedicated development team model, you get the best of all the engagement models. You earn flexibility in time and material along with predictability in cost. Cost-efficiency in comparison with in-house models There are no single statistics, but the average outsourcing rate is much lower compared to the average in-house rate. Sometimes, the difference in the rates is not so large. But such vendors usually offer the top efficiency that could hardly be reached with the in-house workforce. Cut extra expenses and resources on equipment, office and infrastructure. Apart from arrangement activities, release more time and resources for important business processes such as competitor analysis and technology research. Dedicated team scalability Access the flexibility to determine the size of the dedicated team on their project. Throughout the development process, you can increase or decrease the team as required. Quality infrastructure Setting up a full IT department is expensive for startups and mid-sized companies. Hiring a dedicated development team offers a cost-effective solution for creating complex tech products with the best resources without additional investments. A software development vendor is already well-equipped to handle projects of varying sizes or complexities, and deliver optimal results. Continuous integration Ongoing evolution and enhancement are crucial for large project success. A dedicated team model is effective for projects that need growth and evolution. Keeping the dedicated team intact avoids the need to expand or set up a new one. What Are the Challenges When Hiring Dedicated Development Teams? Finding remote developers matching company values Finding a development team that aligns with your company's values and approach to software creation can sometimes pose a challenge. While industry standards and recommended methods are widely known, not all practitioners follow them. Setting up effective communication Commonly, dedicated development teams are composed of remote workers who may be co-in a shared office, but not necessarily at your physical location. As a result, managing remote teams presents typical challenges such as maintaining effective communication and keeping dedicated team members motivated. Fortunately, these difficulties are less pronounced when you hire remote dedicated development team with a higher level of experience. Ensuring high level of security For security considerations, especially during the early stages of working with a specific development team, we advise to keep critical projects and software development processes in-house. Over time, as you build a relationship and gain a deeper understanding of the team's capabilities, you can determine the extent to which you can rely on outsourcing. How to Build a Dedicated Development Team? Define requirements and estimate the scope Although changes during the development process are inevitable, it's important to have a well-defined framework in place. It may include the type of solution you need (such as web or mobile), the problem that this solution should solve, and the timeline. To ensure they meet the requirements, the software development vendor needs to understand clearly the tasks and the specialists required. A business analyst works with the clients to determine their needs, and then define the project requests and scope. There are two potential scenarios in determining the project scope: The client has a predefined scope. Here the budget is discussed with the client, considering the priorities and estimated or given timelines. The client does not understand precisely the exact scope. Then, a discovery stage may be conducted to make hypotheses and test them through prototypes. Based on the test results, they analyze the existing scope to determine if it meets the objectives. If not, they conduct further discovery and research, until they identify the needed scope. Choosing a reliable software development vendor We recommend you to pay attention to 3 important aspects, like experience, portfolio, and level of communication. But there are so many results that you definitely need to narrow down the search. And here are great ways to do this: Searching in Google works the best, B2B portals such as Clutch, References from other clients. Find outsourcing vendors with pricing, descriptions, and real reviews from other clients. It facilitates your choice. Searching and interviewing team members The software provider selects suitable candidates for every needed role and interviews. It gives you the option to take part in the interviewing process, providing a valuable opportunity to clarify expectations for the project goals and each development team member's role and responsibilities. By being involved in the hiring process, you can select dedicated software developers who not only possess the technical expertise, but also align with the company culture and exhibit strong soft skills. The goal of this stage is to build a team of highly skilled and motivated professionals to work on your project. Before you hire a dedicated team Before hiring a dedicated team, it's important to agree on the responsibility distribution. Clearly understand the development process and determine in advance who will be responsible for each task to avoid conflicts during critical moments of the project. At this step, the outsourcing vendor deals with the legal nuances of your cooperation. The set of documents usually includes: Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). A dedicated team works with sensitive internal information. That’s why such cooperation normally starts with signing an NDA. The document outlines what material and knowledge should be confidential and what the penalty for its disclosure will be. Master Services Agreement (MSA). It’s a contract specifying most of the terms of the cooperation. Usually, it covers payment terms, protocols for invoicing & payment, dispute resolution, available volume discounts, product warranties, credit limits and credit periods, intellectual property ownership, and liabilities. And the critical thing to mention. To grant all the rights for the developed product to you and your company, it shall clearly state this condition in the MSA.  Statement of work (SOW). This document describes and defines all terms and conditions of your project. It clarifies deliverables, timeline, costs, project conditions, and special requirements. It’s essential to make the SOW clear to every party, which will help avoid misunderstanding and disputes. The development team is given the go-ahead, and the collaboration begins with a call to meet the team, discuss responsibilities, receive access to development tools, align project and business priorities, and establish regular check-ins. Managing the development team To ensure a successful development process with your dedicated team, it's important to stay involved and maintain open communication. Some actions you may take for that include: Holding regular online meetings to review progress and address any issues. Encouraging development team members to ask questions and provide feedback. Staying in touch with the vendor's project manager to ensure everything is on track. Consider holding an offline meeting with the dedicated team to build personal relationships and foster a positive work environment. By actively participating and being available to the team, you can help ensure a successful outcome and build a positive reputation as a supportive client. Why Hire a Dedicated Development Team from Belitsoft? Tangible cost reduction Hiring dedicated developers with Belitsoft allows you to cut your software development costs due to lower rates compared to the US, UK, Israel, and many other countries. You also save on creating IT infrastructure, as well as hiring and onboarding costs. Faster time-to-market Belitsoft’s ability to create a dedicated development team within a shorter timeframe and scale it up promptly afterwards helps reduce your solution’s time-to-market. Team scaling speed and capacity In a matter of weeks, we can assemble a top-notch, multidisciplinary team of 6–8 dedicated software developers and other specialists to work on your project. To get things started quickly, we can even provide you with 1–2 developers right away. For example, in one of our major long-term projects, we have started by providing the enterprise with a dedicated team of 5 specialists, and then gradually expanded the team up to 100+ software developers and QA testers. Multidisciplinary & cross-domain expertise We have created Dedicated Teams for startups, well-established clients, and projects that aimed to merge multiple other standalone projects. Our dedicated development teams comprise skilled professionals in a variety of technologies, including Java developers, .NET developers, including those proficient in SharePoint development, Python developers, PHP developers, C++ developers, and more. As for domains, our team has strong expertise in eLearning, Healthcare, Business Intelligence, Insurance, Logistics, etc. Great flexibility Wherever our clients are located, we make our schedule with at least several hours of time overlap. When you require closer collaboration, our dedicated teams adjust their working hours bound to your schedule. Effective management and regular communication Our dedicated teams are self-sufficient and expertly led by experienced Project Managers with years of managing expertise. By assigning a dedicated project manager to oversee the day-to-day operations and workflows, we ensure that the project is transparent and aligned with your goals. The project manager will keep in regular contact with your in-house project manager or product owner to keep you informed. This allows you to focus on the key aspects of the project while still retaining full technical ownership. Gain access to our company's best practices and the project artifacts and knowledge accumulated during the project. Control the results without spending time on daily management. Quick start To assemble a tailored dedicated development team for you promptly, we refer to the extensive pool of over 400 in-house Developers, Product Managers, and Business Analysts. This vast network and access to top talent from major software development hubs also helps us create dedicated teams that meet your specific needs. Efficient recruitment processes and fast turnaround times allow us to quickly add more skilled developers to your team as on demand. Most times, we can provide an additional 1-2 software developers almost immediately. Years of hands-on expertise Belitsoft has been in software development and IT consulting for 17 years. We’ve received experience in various business scenarios and environments, including mergers and acquisitions, project recovery, and collaboration with both in-house and third-party development teams, among others. These experts have honed their skills in overcoming challenges and delivering successful outcomes. Reliable support Our dedicated development teams provide support services during and after product implementation. You get technical support and backups for your product. This ensures exceptional customer service in the long run. Total security and compliance All the dedicated teams at Belitsoft have a proven track record of delivering successful projects that meet the needs of our clients. Now that we use our ISO 9001 certified quality management system, we ensure that projects are executed with a focus on meeting our customers' expectations for quality, time, and budget. Additionally, Belitsoft provides assurance that our customers' data is protected and secure. Invest in a dedicated development team with us for a smart and profitable solution and get top-notch results at a fair price. Let’s talk. 5 Factors That Make Dedicated Development Team Work Define requirements and goals Before assembling a dedicated development team or outsourcing to a third-party provider, it's crucial to take the time to assess your business needs. From there, establish well-defined goals based on these requirements, including the project's scope, desired outcomes, and potential benefits. Do your own research Before hiring a dedicated development team, it's crucial to conduct a thorough background check. This includes reviewing references, experiences, portfolios, and client testimonials. Assess the team's expertise in handling projects similar to yours, including the number of projects they have completed, the types of clients they have worked with, and the technology they use. With this information you have a better understanding of the development team's ability to meet your expectations. When it comes to long-term projects, consider conducting interviews and skill assessments for each dedicated team member to ensure they are the right fit for the job. Maintain transparent communication Effective communication is crucial for the success of your project and outsourcing relationships. Before deciding, consider the cultural differences, common language, and time zone differences. For example, if you are based in the US and looking to hire a dedicated development team based in India, these factors can greatly affect the outcome of the project. Misalignment in these areas can lead to difficulties in feedback and communication, thus hindering the progress of the project. Build trust To ensure the success of remote projects, establishing trust is essential. Building trust is a gradual process and requires continuous effort from both parties. One way to foster trust is by offering flexible work arrangements, clearly communicating project expectations, being transparent in payment processes, and avoiding changes in project requirements without proper compensation. By making credit a priority, you can ensure a strong and productive relationship with your dedicated development team. Start small To get initiated with hiring a dedicated development team, set up with a small project. This allows you to assess the viability of this model for your needs and determine if you can form a long-lasting relationship with the dedicated team. Starting small reduces risks and helps manage costs effectively, which is beneficial for startups, as well as small and mid-sized businesses. Dedicated Development Team VS Fixed Price Model A fixed-price model is a cooperation based on a fixed budget for the project, regardless of the time and resources needed to complete the project. It means that you and the software vendor agree on the price, deadline, project scope, technologies, and detailed product requirements in advance. However, the vendor needs more time to prepare the detailed specifications. The key favor of a fixed-price is skipping budget-related surprises. The major disadvantage—you cannot make changes in the workflow. Actually, you can work it out, but be ready for extra pay and moving the deadline. The fixed price will work for: MVP development Short-term projects Projects with clear deadlines Projects with determined specifications Dedicated Team VS Time & Material Model The time & material model means that the client pays only for time and resources spent on the project. The leading improvement of the time & material model is the freedom in changing project requirements and scope of work alongside the development. While the key obstacle is the difficulty in planning and controlling the budget because of such changes. This engagement model is suitable for: Projects where requirements can change The market is not thoroughly explored Product market fit is yet to be determined Belitsoft's Engagement Models to Choose From Belitsoft offers several engagement models that ensure an efficient solution to your software development needs, whether it's to expand your in-house team, acquire specialized technical knowledge, or speed up the development process. The Dedicated Team model provides access to Belitsoft's top-notch software development professionals on a long-term basis. The Team Extension model ensures you receive a highly skilled software development team that aligns with the required expertise and cultural fit for your project. The Project-based model offers a dependable collaboration between you and Belitsoft specialists who are focused on delivering specific project objectives. Ready to work with a dedicated team? No need to spend your valuable time searching for a reliable and experienced partner. At Belitsoft we offer top technical talents and 10+ years of expertise. With us, you will reduce costs of software development by over 40%. Need assistance?

Mobile app quality: why does it matter? According to the survey from Dimensional Research, users are highly intolerant of any software issues. As a result, they are quick to ditch mobile apps after just a couple of occurrences. The key areas were mistakes are unforgivable are: Speed: 61% of users expect apps to start in 4 seconds or less; 49% of users expect apps to respond in 2 seconds or less. Responsiveness: 80% of users only attempt to use a problematic app three times or less; 53% of users uninstall or remove a mobile app with severe issues like crashes, freezes or errors; 36% of users stop using a mobile app if it is not battery-efficient. Stability: 55% of users believe that the app itself is responsible for performance issues; 37% lose interest in a company’s brand because of crashes or errors. The app markets, such as Google Play and App Store encourage users to leave reviews of apps. Low-point reviews will naturally lead to decreased app’s attractiveness. ‘Anyone can read your app store rating. There’s no way to hide poor quality in the world of mobile.’ Michael Croghan, Mobile Solutions Architect ‘Therefore,“metrics defining the mobile app user experience must be measured from the customer’s perspective and ensure it meets or exceeds expectations at all times.’ Dimensional Research The findings reinforce the importance of delivering quality mobile apps. This, in turn, necessitates establishing proper mobile app testing procedures. QA and testing: fundamentals Quality assurance and testing are often treated as the same thing. The truth is, quality assurance is a much broader term than just testing. Software Quality Assurance (SQA) consists of a means of monitoring the software engineering processes and methods used to ensure quality. SQA encompasses the entire software development process. It includes procedures such as: requirements definition, software design, coding, source code control, code reviews, software configuration management, testing, release management, and product integration. Testing, in its turn, is the execution of a system conducted to provide information about the quality of the software product or service under test. The purpose is to detect software bugs (errors or other flaws) and confirm that the product is ready for mass usage. The quality management system usually complies with one or more standards, such as ISO 9000 or model such as CMMI. Belitsoft leverages ISO 9001 certificate to continuously provide solutions that meet customer and regulatory requirements. Learn more about our testing services! Mobile app testing: core specifics The mobile market is characterized by fierce competition and users expect app vendors to update their apps frequently. Developers and testers are pushed to release new functionality in a shorter time. It often results in a “fail fast” development approach, with quick fixes later on. Source:http://www.perfecto.io Mobile applications are targeted for a variety of gadgets that are manufactured by different companies (Apple, Samsung, Lenovo, Xiaomi, Sony, Nokia, etc.). Different devices run on different operating systems (Android, iOS, Windows). The more platforms and operating systems are supported, the more combinations one has to test. Moreover, OS vendors constantly push out updated software, which forces developers to respond to the changes. Mobile phones were once devised to receive and make calls, so an application should not block communication. Mobile devices are constantly searching for the network connection (2G, 3G, 4G, WiFi, etc.) and should work decently at different data rates. Modern smartphones enable input through multiple channels (voice, keyboard, gestures, etc.). Mobile apps should take advantage of these capabilities to increase the ease and comfort of use. Mobile apps can be developed as native, cross-platform, hybrid or web (progressive web apps). Understanding the application type can influence a set of features one would check when testing an app. For example, whether an app relies on internet connection and how its behavior changes when it is online and offline. Mobile app testing: automated or manual? The right answer is both manual and automated. Each type has its merits and shortcomings and is better suited for a certain set of tasks at the certain stages of an app’s lifecycle. As the name implies, automated mobile app testing is performed with the help of automation tools that run prescripted test cases. The purpose of test automation is to make the testing process more simple and efficient. According to the World Quality Report, around 30% of testing is automated. So where is automation an option? Regression testing. This type of testing is conducted to ensure that an application is fully functional after new changes were implemented. As regression tests can be repeated, automation enables to run them quickly. Writing test scripts will require some time initially. However, it will pay off with fast testing in the long run, as the testers will not have to start the test from scratch each time. Load and performance testing. Automated testing will do a good job when it is needed to simulate an app’s behavior strained with thousands of concurrent users. Unit testing. The aim of unit testing is to inspect the correctness of individual parts of code, typically with an automated test suite. ‘A good unit test suite augments the developer documentation for your app. This helps new developers come up to speed by describing the functionality of specific methods. When coupled with good code coverage, a unit test acts as a safeguard against regressions. Unit tests are important for anything that does not produce a UI.’ Adrian Hall, AWS blog contributor Repetitive tasks. Automation can save the need to perform tedious tests manually. It makes the testing time-efficient and free of human errors.       While the primary concern of automated testing is the functionality of an app, manual testing focuses on user experience. Manual mobile app testing implies that testers manually execute test cases without any assistant automation tools. They play the role of end-user by checking the correct response of the application features as quickly as possible. Manual testing is a more flexible approach and allows for a more natural simulation of user actions. As a result, it is a good fit for agile environments, where time is extremely limited. As the mobile app unfolds, some features and functionality codes are also changing. Hence, automated test scripts have to be constantly reworked, which takes time. When working on a smaller product like MVP, manual testing allows to quickly validate whether the code behaves as it is intended. Moreover, manual testing is a common practice in: Exploratory testing. During the exploratory testing, a tester follows the given script and identify issues found in the process. Usability testing. Personal experience is the best tool to assess if the app looks, feels and responds right. This facet is about aesthetics and needs a human eye.  ‘While automated tests can streamline most of the testing required to release software, manual testing is used by QA teams to fill in the gaps and ensure that the final product really works as intended by seeing how end users actually use an application.’ Brena Monteiro, Software Engineer at iMusics Mobile app testing: where? When testing a mobile app one typically has three options for the testing environment: real devices, emulators/simulators, a cloud platform. Testing on real devices is naturally the most reliable approach that provides the highest accuracy of results. Testing in natural conditions also provides an insight into how an app actually works with all the hardware and software specifics. 70% of failures occur because apps are incompatible with device OS versions, and customization of OS by many manufacturers. About 30% of Android app failures stem from the incompatibility of apps with the hardware (memory, display, chips, sensors, etc.) Such things as push-notifications, devices sensors, geolocation, battery consumption, network connectivity, incoming interruptions, random app closing are easier to test on physical gadgets. Perfect replication and bug fixing are also can be achieved only on real devices. However, the number of mobile devices on the market makes it highly unlikely to test the software on all of them directly. The variety of manufacturers, platforms, operating systems versions, hardware and screen densities results in market fragmentation.  Moreover, not only devices from different manufacturers can behave differently, but the devices from the same manufacturer too. Source: mybroadband.co.za Source:developer.android.com. The share of Android OS versions When selecting a device’s stack, it is important not only to include the most popular of them but also to test an app on different screen sizes and OSes. Consumer trends may also vary depending on the geographical location of the target audience. Source: https://www.kantar.com As the names imply, emulators and simulators refer to special tools designed to imitate the behavior of real devices and operating systems. An emulator is a full virtual machine version of a certain mobile device that runs on a PC. It duplicates the inner structure of a device and its original behavior. Google’s Android SDK provides an Android device emulator. On the contrary, a simulator is a tool that duplicates only certain functionality of a device that does not simulate a real device’s hardware. Apple’s simulator for Xcode is an example. ‘Emulators and simulators “have many options for using different configurations, operating systems, and screen resolutions. This makes them the perfect tool for quick testing checks during a development workflow.’ John Wargo, Principal Program Manager for Visual Studio App Center at Microsoft ‘While this speeds up the testing process, it comes with a critical drawback — emulators can’t fully replicate device hardware. This makes it difficult to test against real-world scenarios using an emulator. Issues related to the kernel code, the amount of memory on a device, the Wi-Fi chip, and other device-specific features can’t be replicated on an emulator.’ Clinton Sprauve, Sauce Labs blog contributor The advent of cloud-based testing made it possible to get web-based access to a large set of devices for testing mobile apps. It can help to get over the drawbacks of both real devices and emulators/simulators. ‘If you want to just focus on quality and releasing mobile apps to the market, and not deal with device management, let the cloud do it for you.’ Eran Kinsbruner, lead software evangelist at Perfecto Amazon’s Device Farm, Google’s Firebase Test Lab, Microsoft's Xamarin Test Cloud, Kobiton, Perfecto, Sauce Labs are just some of the most popular services for cloud tests execution. ‘Emulators are good for user interface testing and initial quality assurance, but real devices are essential for performance testing, while device cloud testing is a good way to scale up the number of devices and operating systems.’ Will Kelly, a freelance technology writer Mobile app testing: what to test? Performance Performance testing explores functional realm as well as the back-end services of an app. Most vital performance characteristics include energy consumption, the usage of GPS and other battery-killing features, network bandwidth usage, memory usage, as well as whether an app operates properly under excessive loads. ‘It is recommended to start every testing activity with a fully charged battery, and then note the battery state every 10 minutes in order to get an impression of battery drain. Also, test the mobile app with a remaining device battery charge of 10–15%, because most devices will enter a battery-safe mode, disabling some hardware features of the device. In this state, it is very likely to find bugs such as requiring a turned-off hardware feature (GPS, for example).’ Daniel Knott, a mobile expert During the testing process, it is essential to check the app’s behavior when transiting to lower bandwidth networks (like EDGE) or unstable WiFi connections. Functionality Functional testing is used to ensure that the app is performing in the way in its expected. The requirements are usually predefined in specifications. Mobile devices are shipped with specific hardware features like camera, storage, screen, microphone, etc., and sensors like geolocation, accelerometer, ambient light or touch sensors. All of them should be tried out in different settings and conditions. ‘For example, “every camera with a different lens and resolution will have an impact on picture dimension and size; it is important to test how the mobile app handles the different picture resolutions, sizes, and uploading photos to the server.’ Daniel Knott No device is also safe from interruption scenarios like incoming calls, messages or other notifications. The aim is to spot potential hazards and unwanted issues that may arise in the event of an interruption. One should not also forget that mobile apps are used by human beings who don’t always do the expected things. For example, what happens when a user randomly pokes at an application screen or inputs some illogical data? To test such scenarios, monkey testing tools are used. Usability The goal of usability testing is to ensure the experience users get meets their expectations. Users easily get frustrated with their apps, and the most typical culprits on the usability side are: Layout and Design. User-friendly layout and design help to complete tasks easily. Therefore, mobile app testers should understand the guidelines each OS provides for their apps. Interaction. An application should feel natural and intuitive. Any confusion will eventually lead to the abandonment of an app. However, the assessment of an app’s convenience by a dedicated group may be a bit subjective. To get a more well-grounded insight into how your users perceive your app, one can implement A/B testing. The idea is to ship two different versions of an app to the same segment of end-users. By analyzing the users’ behavior, one can adjust the elements and features to the way the target audience likes it more. The practice can also guide marketers when making some strategic decisions. Localization When an app is targeted at the international market, it is likely to need the support of different languages to which devices are configured. The most frequent challenges associated with localization mobile app testing are related to date, phone number formats, currency conversion, language direction, and text lengths, etc. What is more, the language may also influence a general layout of the screen. For example, the look of the word “logout” varies considerably in different languages. Source: http://www.informit.com Therefore, it is important to think about language peculiarities in advance to make sure UI is adapted to handle different languages. Final thoughts The success of a mobile app largely depends on its quality. ‘The tolerance of the users is way lower than in the desktop era. The end-users who adopt mobile applications have high expectations with regards to quality, usability and, most importantly, performance.’ Eran Kinsbruner Belitsoft is dedicated to providing effective and quality mobile app testing. We adhere to the best testing practices to make the process fast and cost-effective. Write to us to get a quote!

Categories of Tests Proving the reliability of custom software begins and ends with thorough testing. Without it, the quality of any bespoke application simply cannot be guaranteed. Both the clients sponsoring the project and the engineers building it must be able to trust that the software behaves correctly - not just in ideal circumstances but across a range of real-world situations.  To gain that trust, teams rely on three complementary categories of tests. Positive (or smoke) tests demonstrate that the application delivers the expected results when users follow the intended and documented workflows. Negative tests challenge the system with invalid, unexpected, or missing inputs. These tests confirm the application fails safely and protects against misuse. Regression tests rerun previously passing scenarios after any change, whether a bug fix or a new feature. This confirms that new code does not break existing functionality. Together, these types of testing let stakeholders move forward with confidence, knowing the software works when it should, fails safely when it must, and continues to do both as it evolves. Test Cases Every manual test in a custom software project starts as a test case - an algorithm written in plain language so that anyone on the team can execute it without special tools.  Each case is an ordered list of steps describing: the preconditions or inputs the exact user actions the expected result A dedicated QA specialist authors these steps, translating the acceptance criteria found in user stories and the deeper rules codified in the Software Requirements Specification (SRS) into repeatable checks. Because custom products must succeed for both the average user and the edge-case explorer, the suite is divided into two complementary buckets: Positive cases (about 80%): scenarios that mirror the popular, obvious flows most users follow every day - sign up, add to cart, send messages. Negative cases (about 20%): less likely or invalid paths that stress the system with missing data, bad formats, or unusual sequencing - attempting checkout with an expired card, uploading an oversized file, refreshing mid-transaction. This 80/20 rule keeps the bulk of effort focused on what matters most. By framing every behavior - common or rare - as a well-documented micro-algorithm, the QA team proves that quality is systematically, visibly, and repeatedly verified. Applying the Pareto Principle to Manual QA The Pareto principle - that a focused 20% of effort uncovers roughly 80% of the issues - drives smart test planning just as surely as it guides product features.  When QA tries to run positive and negative cases together, however, that wisdom is lost. Developers must stop coding and wait for a mixed bag of results to come back, unable to act until the whole run is complete. In a typical ratio of one tester to four or five programmers, or two testers to ten, those idle stretches mushroom, dragging productivity down and souring client perceptions of velocity. A stepwise "positive-first" cadence eliminates the bottleneck. For every new task, the tester executes only the positive cases, logs findings immediately, and hands feedback straight to the developer. Because positive cases represent about 20% of total test time yet still expose roughly 80% of defects, most bugs surface quickly while programmers are still "in context" and can fix them immediately. Only when every positive case passes - and the budget or schedule allows - does the tester circle back for the heavier, rarer negative scenarios, which consume the remaining 80% of testing time to root out the final 20% of issues. That workflow looks like this: The developer has self-tests before hand-off. The tester runs the positive cases and files any bugs in JIRA right away. The tester moves on to the next feature instead of waiting for fixes. After fixes land, the tester re-runs regression tests to guard existing functionality. If the suite stays green, the tester finally executes the deferred negative cases. By front-loading the high-yield checks and deferring the long-tail ones, the team keeps coders coding, testers testing, and overall throughput high without adding headcount or cost. Escaping Murphy’s Law with Automated Regression Murphy’s Law - "Anything that can go wrong will go wrong" - hangs over every release, so smart teams prepare for the worst-case scenario: a new feature accidentally crippling something that used to work. The antidote is mandatory regression testing, driven by a suite of automated tests. An autotest is simply a script, authored by an automation QA engineer, that executes an individual test case without manual clicks or keystrokes. Over time, most of the manual test catalog should migrate into this scripted form, because hand-running dozens or hundreds of old cases every sprint wastes effort and defies the Pareto principle. Automation itself splits along the system’s natural boundaries: Backend tests (unit and API) Frontend tests (web UI and mobile flows) APIs - the glue between modern services - get special attention. A streamlined API automation workflow looks like this: The backend developer writes concise API docs and positive autotests. The developer runs those self-tests before committing code. Automation QA reviews coverage and fills any gaps in positive scenarios. The same QA then scripts negative autotests, borrowing from existing manual cases and the API specification. The result is a "battle-worthy army" of autotests that patrols the codebase day and night, stopping defects at the gate. When a script suddenly fails, the team reacts immediately - either fixing the offending code or updating an obsolete test. Well-organized automation slashes repetitive manual work, trims maintenance overhead, and keeps budgets lean. With thorough, continuously running regression checks, the team can push new features while staying confident that yesterday’s functionality will still stand tall tomorrow. Outcome & Value Delivered By marrying the Pareto principle with a proactive guard against Murphy’s Law, a delivery team turns two classic truisms into one cohesive strategy. The result is a development rhythm that delivers faster and at lower cost while steadily raising the overall quality bar. Productivity climbs without any extra headcount or budget, and the client sees a team that uses resources wisely, hits milestones, and keeps past functionality rock-solid. That efficiency, coupled with stability, translates directly into higher client satisfaction. How Belitsoft Can Help We help software teams find bugs quickly, spend less on testing, and release updates with confidence. If you are watching every dollar We place an expert tester on your team. They design a test plan that catches most bugs with only a small amount of work. Result: fewer testing hours, lower costs, and quicker releases. If your developers work in short, agile sprints Our process returns basic smoke test results within a few hours. Developers get answers quickly and do not have to wait around. Less waiting means the whole team moves faster. If your releases are critical We build automated tests that run all day, every day. A release cannot go live if any test fails, so broken features never reach production. Think of it as insurance for every deployment. If your product relies on many APIs and integrations We set up two layers of tests: quick checks your own developers can run, plus deeper edge case tests we create. These tests alert you right away if an integration slows down, throws errors, or drifts from the specification. If you need clear numbers for the board You get live dashboards showing test coverage, bug counts, and average fix time. Every test is linked to the user story or requirement it protects, so you can prove compliance whenever asked. Belitsoft is not just extra testers. We combine manual testing with continuous automation to cut costs, speed up delivery, and keep your software stable, so you can release without worry.