Would you have ever imagined that your wrist could show more than just time? How transformed the world has become, that everything is just a click away. Where technology is revolutionizing by the hour, it has brought with itself the new trend of wearable apps, where your smartphone is available to you on your wrist itself. As anticipated even before 2016, the digital transition is pretty conspicuous today, especially with the latest smartwatch unveiled by Apple which won’t just have the capabilities of the normal mobile apps but also of being the first with a cellular built-in. One then easily notices the progress of smart wearables with a CAGR of 42.6% from the 2014 to the coming 2019.
But being different from IoT devices, these wearables with their unique UIs demand the same level of design, testing and monitoring like the general mobile applications. Therefore, the need for scrutinized testing of these wearable apps has seen a monumental rise over the time. To make it user friendly, the demand for functional, installation, performance, security, usability and localization testing has increased. Along with these, to keep a check on memory, connectivity and interoperability, wearable apps have and will need to undergo rigorous testing and monitoring.
The DevTest arms then need to brace themselves for a number of challenges in delays, releases and even the various tools used to support web, mobile and IoT. In order to overcome the complex testing environments, especially with wearable apps, the DevTest teams need to make sure to run thorough checks for load spikes, battery constraints, network changes, timely alerts and notifications etc. With the worldwide wearable market growing with the sale of over 310.4 billion wearable devices in 2017, it necessitates the compatibility of wearable apps with the user itself who desires an overall satisfying experience.
But what then is the solution to overcome such roadblocks during testing? The steps to be adopted here are pretty simple.
- Thorough analysis of differences- it becomes imperative to analyze the differences between smartphones and wearable app development in order to ensure smooth performance.
- Iterative Development- testing and monitoring need to go hand in hand in order to ensure that the wearable apps function smoothly as well as support the latest version of hardwares and softwares.
- Use of real devices- to make sure that the apps function in real-life environment, it becomes all the more significant to test it on real hardware.
The above list is no way an exhaustive set but a good one to consider starting with. Thus, with the era of wearable apps that has ushered in, it demands frequent and efficient testing too, in order to survive in the competitive market and only those who realize the importance of the same will be the ones to exist in the ever competitive digital market.
