I would’ve done 8, but I’m too lazy for that.
Mobile App development is often regarded as a harder field of programming to get into for reasons such as having to deal with limited processing power, but having learned it as my own first step into programming, I can assure you, it’s really not difficult. You don’t even think of processing power constraints as much as you think.
So here’s 9 reasons why you should get into Android Programming
1. It’s not hard to get into
But I just talked about that.
To add a little more, once you’re into it, it becomes your own world where your imagination is literally the limit of what you can create. If you don’t know how to implement a certain feature, such as using radio boxes, it’s really easy to look it up. Android’s online documentation is neat and easy to understand (developer.android.com), and the community is great too. Stackoverflow is a great resource where people post their questions and problems in development, and different people offer different solutions you can choose from. If you have a question, chances are people have already asked and answered it. If you do happen to be the first to stuck on a problem, it’s almost seamless to ask a question yourself. People tend to answer quickly too.
2. Android dominates the market
In countries such as USA and the UK, it looks like Apple and Android have a fairly evenly matched competition, but what if I told you Android accounts for about 80% of the smartphone population?
This means that it’s easier to get people to download your app, to find an audience. If you sell your app on the Play Store, it also becomes easier to turn a profit. Not to mention, the publishing license on Android is cheaper as well ($25 one-time purchase compared to Apple’s $99/year)
3. Career Benefit
Android Development is regarded as a high-level skill in the industry, and the demand for it is pretty high. You can work as a freelancer (good time to put it out there that I’m open… No?.. Nothing?… Ok :c), or in a company in various areas of the Android development such as the UI/UX, back-end, and much more (or I just ran out of ideas), which brings us to our next point.
4. There’s many different areas to specialise in
Android Development itself can be considered a programming specialisation, but even in that, there are more things to further specialise in. I’m talking about whether you’re best at making designs, programming the designs, animating them within the app, creating databases and database methods, or writing the general flow of the app.
You will often be working on teams where each programmer has greater knowledge and specialisation in certain areas of Android, and that’s the beauty of it. It’s such a big world to explore.
5. There are many different kinds of apps to build
The world of Android doesn’t only extend throughout the development aspect of it, but through the user side of it as well. You can have apps that you use everyday, such as this School Planner you must definitely try if you’re a student! www.class-ify.com, much love! (I need to stop), or apps that function quietly in the background such as apps that improve your battery life or control the rotation of your phone.
What most apps do best is digitising physical objects and giving them simple enhanced features. Google Keep does this well by replacing the traditional notebook with a version that you can easily bring up anytime and it syncs to your Google account so you can access it anywhere. Class-ify School Assistant does the same thing too! (Eric, please, it’s gotten so bad that another side of you has to tell you off each time you do it)
Your imagination seriously is the limit
6. You can make apps that benefit yourself greatly
If you’re even thinking of developing the Android, I’m sure you’ve got an Android phone on you. You’re probably reading this on one right now. I’m sure at one point, you’ve thought that a certain app you use could be better if it did something differently, or one would feel better if it was designed a bit differently. This time, you’d have the power to make those changes.
7. The skills are highly transferable
Java (and possibly now, Kotlin) is the main programming language used to develop for Android. Java has a wide array of uses even outside of Android Development. It can be used in game development, scientific programming, and so much more as it has been around for quite a long time. Putting that on your CV/resume will work wonders.
What are you doing still reading this article? Stop brooding about whether you should do it and get into it already. www.udacity.com, that’s a good starting point, was mine as well. I’m pretty sure I’ve convinced you already. Meanwhile, why not check out my app at www.class-ify.com? (Please, stop. It’s getting painful)