9 Custom Android App Development Mistakes to Avoid

Custom Android app development can be a blessing to business owners and appreneurs alike. Yet, if not done right, this can turn your dreams of adding to your bottom line into nightmares. Even trivial errors can turn into numerous low ratings and a shrinking audience.

The Value of Custom Android App Development

There’s so much that custom app development services can offer, including the following benefits.

Apps Tailored to Your Business Needs

No two businesses are alike, and their apps shouldn’t be either.

Custom Android apps are designed to align seamlessly with your brand identity, business goals, and user interface preferences.

They deliver functionality specific to your operations, boosting efficiency and effectiveness. Whether you need advanced features or a flawless user experience, a custom app ensures every element serves a purpose.

For instance, a fitness company can design an app that tracks user activity, offers tailored workout plans, and integrates with wearables—all while reinforcing the brand’s personality.

Elevated User Experience

When an app addresses the specific needs of its users, it naturally creates a better experience.

Custom Android app development allows businesses to design intuitive, visually appealing, and user-centric interfaces. Such apps not only attract new users but also retain existing ones via effortless and enjoyable interactions.

Just think about a food delivery app that considers the history of orders and provides customers with individual bonuses. Such an app is no longer just a utility that users can choose to use or not to use – it becomes a need.

Ease in Integration with Other Systems

Custom Android applications can easily complement systems such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) or Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP).

Together, they can create more efficient work processes and less manual work. Especially as apps ensure real-time access to crucial data and can make correct decisions.

Take retail as an example. An application that’s integrated with inventory can offer real-time stock status, order processing, and checkout. Therefore, it’ll improve the customer experience.

Better Security and Data Privacy

Custom apps can be designed with high-security measures that fit your business requirements and reduce risks.

In addition to strong encryption, you can have developers implement role-based access and other essential measures to secure transactions and data processing. You can further ensure the app’s compliance with your industry’s regulations to avoid hefty penalties.

Designed for Growth and Durability

Custom Android app development enable enterprises to transform, grow, and adapt. That’s because they can be created with scalability, adaptability, and user-centric development in mind.

For instance, you can have developers –

• Leverage modular architectures like MVVM or Clean Architecture for easier updates and maintenance
• Integrate APIs and cloud services for seamless scalability as user demand grows
• Utilize cross-platform frameworks like Flutter or Kotlin Multiplatform for higher adaptability
• Optimize performance via techniques such as efficient coding and caching

9 Costly Android App Development Mistakes

As tempting as the above benefits are, you may miss out on them with the wrong custom developer. Especially if they make the following costly nine mistakes.

1) Using iOS Design Practices

A common mistake is trying to replicate iOS design patterns on Android. This is especially true for developers who have previously worked on iOS projects.

Android and iOS are different in terms of design; and users are aware of the difference between the two. For example, iOS usually places primary navigation at the bottom bar, while Android uses the hamburger menu or tabbed views.

Failure to consider these subtleties will only lead to users’ confusion and, therefore, the lack of active usage of applications.

To avoid this, the developer (and ideally you) should be familiar with Google’s Material Design specifications. These principles offer a guideline for designing good-looking and easy-to-use UIs for Custom Android app development.

2) Neglecting to Use Intents

This may be a little too technical a mistake, but you should be aware of it.

Google Intents in Android are used to facilitate communication between components of an application or across applications. Think of them as messages that allow actions such as initiating an activity, disseminating information, or initiating a service.

Using Intents right enhances modularity and makes the management of the application easier. On the other hand, not doing so can compromise the overall security of your app.  

So, consider checking with developers on this aspect and emphasizing the need for it.

3) Not Supporting Multiple Screen Resolutions

Android is used on a wide variety of devices, all of which have different screen sizes and resolutions. This means that a single solution may not work well on a high-resolution device and may even cause a low-resolution device to freeze.

That’s why it’s important to –

• Use vector graphics
• Provide multiple image versions that are appropriate for different pixel densities
• Incorporate flexible layouts and scrolling mechanisms to provide a consistent experience

You can discuss how to do this with your developers while ensuring other aspects such as optimal app size.

4) Ignoring Memory Leaks

In Android, a memory leak happens when an app keeps holding onto unused data or resources, even when they’re no longer needed. As a result, the device’s memory will grow slowly, and users may experience crashes.

This issue can easily be prevented using tools like WeakReference for object references and diligently releasing resources. Monitoring memory usage during custom Android app development can also help identify and resolve issues early.

5) Blocking the Main Thread

Threads in Android are the mechanism handling tasks for your app. The main thread is the most important as it acts like the central manager of an app. It handles everything the user interacts with, such as buttons, animations, and text displays.

Blocking the main thread means overloading it through network calls, image processing, or database queries. This can lead to delays, app freezes, or even Application Not Responding errors.

So, find out how developers plan to handle heavy operations. Ideally, this is handled by background threads, using AsyncTask, Kotlin Coroutines, or WorkManager. This keeps user interactions seamless and prevents annoying lag time.

6) Reinventing the Wheel

There are cases where developers invest time and effort in creating solutions from scratch when there are dependable ones available. For example, developing one’s network call logic or image-loading libraries isn’t necessary and can complicate things.

Skilled, reliable developers will resort to ready-made tools or libraries to get the job done without wasting time, effort, and resources. Solutions like libraries for animations or APIs for data storage are already optimized and tested. Using them allows developers to focus on new, creative features rather than solving solved problems.

7) Using Deep View Hierarchies

Deep view hierarchies refer to the way the app’s screen layout is organized, like a stack of layers or boxes inside boxes. Each layer (or “view”) holds different UI elements (buttons, images, text).

Stacking too many layers deeply can slow down the app. This wastes time and resources and makes the applications less responsive.

That’s why simplifying these layers helps make the app faster and more responsive. For instance, you can ask the developers about the feasibility of using ConstraintLayout or GridLayout instead of multiple nested LinearLayouts. This reduces the duration of rendering and enhances efficiency.

8) Not Considering the Aspect of Backward Compatibility

Ensuring backward compatibility ensures that newer apps or features will still work smoothly on older devices or operating system versions. So, even if the app’s user has an old phone, they can still run the latest apps without problems. This, in turn, ensures no one is left behind when updates are released.

This isn’t a difficult aspect to achieve, especially via different libraries. Plus, developers can test the app on different Android versions. So, whatever you do, ensure that your app runs on a larger platform of devices.

9) Ignoring Analytics and Optimization

Ignoring analytics and optimization can lead to the creation of inefficient applications.

Analytics help developers understand how users interact with the app, so they can improve it. Meanwhile, optimization ensures the app runs smoothly and uses less battery and data. Without these, the app may become slow, confusing, or less popular.

So, discuss how you can integrate analytics and continuously optimize the app. Only then will its users benefit from it for a longer time.

Need an Android App Developed Right?

At DPL, we specialize in custom Android app development that’s tailored to your business needs and designed to scale with you.

Having worked in IT for more than two decades, our team is ready to meet any challenges you face and deliver an app that’ll provide the best user experience, high performance, and sustainable growth.

So, tell us what you need using the form below, and let’s get started.