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Basics of Mobile Application Testing

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In this article we are going to see the basic things which are usually expected to be tested for any mobile application.

What is Mobile Application Testing?
It is a process to test mobile applications for its functionality, usability and consistency. Any mobile application will either come pre-installed or can be installed from mobile software distribution platform.
Different types of testing that can be done for any Mobile Application
Installation Testing : This process should be user friendly and should consume less time during the process of installation in the device.
Functional Testing : It focuses on functioning of the application.
Stress / Performance Testing : It focuses on the performance and load that an application can take while performing.
Power Consumption Testing : It focuses on mobile battery power consumption while the application is running.
Interrupt Testing : Any interrupt caused due to activities such as phone calls, SMS or MMS, battery down, Network not found etc.
Usability Testing : It should satisfy all user requirements and its a key to the success of any application.

1. Installation Testing
Installing any mobile app should be very simple and we should display the progress of the installation with proper information. So the user does not keep guessing when will the installation get completed.

2. Functional Testing
This is completely dependent on the functioning of the application. Following key points should be taken care of when doing functional testing of the any mobile app.
Make sure all the functional flow of the application works as per the business logic.
The application developed must be tested thoroughly in all major devices for its functionality.
If the memory is full still the application should work properly.
If application is integrated with any e-pay/payment gateway then it should make sure that the data is highly secured.
If application supports multiple orientation then the app should function accordingly.
If application is forcefully stopped during page loading or navigating then it should provide proper informative message.
Application should not crash any time and if it happens then we should debug the scenario why, where and how it crashed.
Monkey testing must be performed by the QA.

3. Stress/Performance Testing
The most painful part of any application is stress & performance testing and it should be handled efficiently.
It finds the exception which are unnoticed during functional and user interface testing.
Application should be capable of handling 20% more than the maximum expected load.
If a user performs same operation again and again then it should not crash or get hanged.
If multiple applications are running at a time in the device then our application should be smart enough to release the phone’s memory for other applications when our app is in background and when our app is active then it should work without any abnormal behaviour.
The load time should not be too much.
Negative test cases should always be performed for better performance of the application.
When battery is low and the app is running, verify that the app runs perfectly without any crashes or limitations imposed by OS of that device.

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Basics of Mobile Application Testing