React Native is an amazing tool for cross-platform development. Designed by Facebook Inc. for a better mobile experience, this framework has conquered the cross-platform application market. And it is no wonder, as there are multiple benefits of using it for mobile app development. Some of them include excellent performance optimization, support of premade and third-party components and libraries, is flexible in terms of development process and teamwork, ease of testing and updating of complete apps, and many more. React Native also has an active and continuously growing community ready to help you in every step of the way.
As it is often the case with many other development solutions, the benefits come with certain challenges and shortcomings. Let’s take a closer look at some of the React Native problems you might face when hiring React Native development agencies (and the ways to solve them).
React Native as a dynamically-typed framework
One of the many benefits React Native has is that it brings the benefits of JavaScript into cross-platform development. As it makes great use of a JavaScript code, it comes with some downsides as well. Unlike the languages used for native development, like Java and Swift, JavaScript is dynamically-typed, which means that it does not enforce parameters to functions and variables. While it is useful in some cases, in others it creates unwanted uncertainties, where a variable can be anything.
To avoid the most common React Native development problems, there is a set of guidelines and standards a React Native developer has to follow. Fortunately, that’s not the only solution — TypeScript will help you out. It’s a development solution that we use on every project involving React Native that makes JavaScript code easier to read and understand with plenty of additional tools, including static checking.
Lack of some modules and APIs
One of the best features of React Native is that it supports plenty of modules and APIs, which makes the development process much easier and faster. Unfortunately, it does not support all the solutions possible, which may be a React Native problem if you’re looking to solve a very specific task. Furthermore, even if the components you need are there, they may be outdated in comparison to the current version of the OS.
As you can build a part of the app using native technologies, it can be used as a solution to this problem. If your case is much more specific and you can’t find a suitable native solution, you can always create your custom module. While it might be challenging, it also might be less time and resource consuming than trying to find a specific component elsewhere.
Reliability of third-party components
As we’re discussing the custom modules, we need to mention the components for React Native floating around online. You can find many solutions that might fit perfectly into your app, but you should remember that, as it is often the case with third-party solutions, not all of them are properly tested and can be trustworthy enough to put into your application.
The only solution to this React Native problem is patience, meticulousness, and experience. Research the modules you like, try to find applications that use them as well. Moreover, an experienced React Native developer will know the first signs of a sketchy component, so try to get one on your team.
UI and UX behavior and requirements
When it comes to UI and UX, there are certain qualities any app needs to have to be accepted by users. From years of using applications, users have come to expect certain standards to be held high, both for apps on Android and iOS. If these standards are not met and the app feels different from how a native application would feel, your target audience might be inclined to stop using it.
The main way to avoid this is through thorough testing. Test your app often and on different stages of the development process. This way you will be able to identify problems as soon as possible, and it will make getting rid of them much easier.
iOS testing and deployment challenges
Apple has a higher standard when it comes to applications in the App Store. So, if you want your application to be on the App Store, you would need to go through a lot of hurdles, from creating an Apple Developer Program account, getting all the right certificates, to testing your application. What makes it even more difficult when it comes to React Native apps is that some libraries for it are considered insecure or non-compliant with Apple’s guidelines (like libraries that are dynamically updating native code like JSPatch)
The best solution to this React Native problem is to have someone on your team who has experienced this whole process before. If you know all the ropes, the process becomes much easier and you won’t have to guess whether your app will fail the App Store review process.
The platform is constantly changing
Since its official release, React Native has gone through 58 official versions. Sometimes the changes it offered were minor, while others were completely game-changing. Furthermore, the creators are continuing to improve React Native, which means more updates are coming soon. While it may seem great to use a constantly improving tool, it also marks a lack of dependency on the framework.
To be on top of your field, you need to adapt. That’s why the best solution to this React Native problem is to prepare your team to be ready to make the changes to the app whenever needed, whether it be because of the latest update or any other reason overall.
Dealing with abstraction levels
Developers that use React Native have to deal with abstraction layers — code in-between the native platform and the React Native developer. While this adds a lot more functionality, it can also be a part of the problem. Namely, any React Native problem in an abstraction level can result in a bug for an app as a whole, and it is difficult to find which layer is responsible for the issue.
The main solution to this problem is to have a development team that has dealt with abstraction layers before. An experienced React Native developer would take less time to find the source of a React Native problem and a solution to it.
Conclusion
React Native is a versatile framework, suitable for a wide variety of projects, but it does have its challenges. Some of them are inherently based on a platform, some are a result of a specific nature of React Native. However, as you’ve seen, there are ways to sidestep them or avoid them altogether. The most effective solution is to have an experienced and knowledgeable development team.
