Mobile applications have become one of the most important fragments of the modern app industry. This is because a rough estimate suggests more than 55% of the total Internet users come from mobile devices. Some of the most widely used mobile devices include smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches. Due to the introduction of mobile app testing, the developers need to diversify the test cases to guarantee the compatibility of their applications on all of these platforms. While implementing mobile testing, the app Testers can use Appium automation to verify the performance of the application on multiple mobile operating systems. Integrating automation testing also helps to improve the quality of the application undergoing the development process.

So in this article, we are going to take a detailed look at how to perform mobile app testing at scale using cloud platforms like LambdaTest.

Mobile App Testing and Appium Automation

The mobile app market has introduced thousands of new devices in the industry. For instance, in the mobile segment, the 3 most popular operating systems include Android, iOS, and Windows. Android being the dominant competitor, releases more than 1000 devices annually. All this data is enough to justify that the developers cannot generalize the test cases while working with the mobile platform. It is also insufficient to restrict the test cases to only simulation and emulation software. The only concrete solution is the introduction of real device testing. This is because, with the proper implementation of real device testing, it is possible to analyze the behavior of the application based on physical parameters.

Some of the most important parameters that real device testing verifies include unstable bandwidth, low battery, changes due to demographics, and user interaction errors. The proper implementation of real device testing also has a critical role in boosting the audience reach for the app company.

Appium is a popular tool for introducing user interface testing on mobile applications. Other than UI testing, the Appium tool is also helpful in executing automation test cases on mobile-based web applications, native apps, and hybrid mobile apps. The open-source infrastructure of Appium ensures that the developers can use all of its features without worrying about any platform fees. It is also possible to integrate appium with cloud-based platforms like LambdaTest to initiate real device testing on remote servers.

Role of APIs in Mobile Testing

The term API stands for application programming interface. While developing an application, APIs are mainly used for enhancing, automating, and streamlining the test case execution process. It is also possible to use multiple APIs for introducing additional features to improve the efficiency and quality of the application undergoing the development process. Some of the most commonly used APIs include Espresso, Appium, Selendroid, and many others.

Using LambdaTest for Mobile App Testing

LambdaTest provides an artificial intelligence-integrated platform for initiating and orchestrating automation test cases. Using the LambdaTest real device testing cloud, the developers can run the mobile-based Appium test cases on 3000+ of real devices and browser versions. Using LambdaTest, the app testers can run the automation test cases on different combinations of devices, browser versions, and other testing parameters. The app testers can also boost the accuracy of test cases by integrating multiple test instances from real devices and simulation software.

The major benefits of using the LambdaTest for initiating mobile app testing with Appium are mentioned below:

• The LambdaTest supports the integration of legacy devices and multiple older browser versions. The major advantage of this feature is that it allows to extend the compatibility of the application to users who have older browser versions.

• The LambdaTest allows the app testers to use parallel test execution to improve the efficiency of the test cases. With this feature, it is possible to run thousands of different test configurations on multiple different machines simultaneously.

• LambdaTest has an extensive support system that consists of live chat, over-the-phone support, and even detailed mailing features. Using all of these options, the developers can gain adequate information about all the features and tools available with this platform. They also have the opportunity to use the LambdaTest community to discuss various features and problems.

• The test report generated by LambdaTest after executing the Appium test cases will not only consist of the test activity logs but also multiple visual representations like videos and screenshots. Implementing these data will allow the app testers to quickly find the errors in the core infrastructure. This process will in turn, help to simplify the troubleshooting and debugging process that will follow soon after.

Commonly Used Tools for Mobile App Testing

Based on our research and understanding, some of the most commonly used tools for executing mobile app testing are mentioned below:

• Appium: As we already mentioned earlier, Appium is an open-source tool for executing user interface test cases on mobile applications. The Appium supports multiple programming languages and also has an integrated WebDriver interface interface. Using this interface, the developers can interact with the native elements of mobile apps, including native and hybrid apps. The Appium also supports the execution of the test cases on both Android and iOS applications.

• UI Automator: This mobile App Testing tool is natively provided by Apple. This is a part of the XCode infrastructure. The primary motive of this tool is to provide a native infrastructure for testing iOS apps.

• Espresso: Using this tool, the application developers can run efficient test cases on the Android environment. It also allows the app testers to write reliable and concise UI test cases. Finally, it provides a stable and fluent infrastructure that is very easy to understand and implement.

Executing Mobile Testing with Appium and LambdaTest

By integrating the Appium with LambdaTest, the application developers can easily execute the automation test cases on the LambdaTest real device testing cloud. To simplify this process for the new automation testers and developers, we have listed all the prerequisites and required steps in the intended order:

1. For the new automation testers, the first step is to navigate to the official website of LambdaTest and create a new account to purchase the relevant license. Then, they will receive the access key and username for logging in to their account. For later use, they will find all these credentials in the account settings from the user dashboard.

2. Now the app developers have to find the target device details on which they want to execute their test cases. It is also important to remember that during this process, the application developers have to use the region parameter to specify the geographic region on which they want to target the test cases. for this process, they have to initiate the following command:

curl -u “YOUR_LAMBDATEST_USERNAME:YOUR_LAMBDATEST_ACCESS_KEY” -X GET “https://mobile-api.lambdatest.com/mobile-automation/api/v1/list?region=us”

3. Now, the app testers have to upload the application to the LambdaTest real device test cloud for running the test cases. During this process, they have to use certain parameters like custom ID, visibility, and storage. For the uploading process, the application developers can either perform it using the app file or the app URL. The system will respond to this request with a JSON object containing the app URL. We have mentioned the code snippets for the App URL approach below:

App URL:

 curl -u “YOUR_LAMBDATEST_USERNAME:YOUR_LAMBDATEST_ACCESS_KEY” -X POST “https://manual-api.lambdatest.com/app/upload/realDevice” -F “url=https://prod-mobile-artefacts.lambdatest.com/assets/docs/proverbial_android.apk” -F “name=Proverbial_App” -F “custom_id=sampleName” -F “storage=url” -F “visibility=individual”

4. After this process, the testers have to enter the following code to initiate the app fetching process. While working with Android apps, the developers have to enter the following code to begin this process.

curl –location –request GET “https://YOUR_LAMBDATEST_USERNAME:YOUR_LAMBDATEST_ACCESS_KEY@manual-api.lambdatest.com/app/data?type=android&level=user”

5. After receiving the request, the system will respond to it by displaying the following code in the command terminal:

{

  “metaData”: {

    “type”: “ios”,

    “total”: 1

  },

  “data”: [

    {

      “app_id”: “APP100245789181570497850”,

      “name”: “proverbial_ios.ipa”,

      “type”: “ios”,

      “updated_at”: “2022-05-10T11:19:30.000Z”,

      “shared”: false,

      “source”: “web-client”

    }

  ]

}

6. In case the app developers want to delete the uploaded application after executing the test cases, they simply have to enter the following code to initiate this process.

curl –location –request DELETE “https://YOUR_LAMBDATEST_USERNAME:YOUR_LAMBDATEST_ACCESS_KEY@manual-api.lambdatest.com/app/delete” –header ‘Content-Type: application/json’ –data-raw ‘{

    “appIds” : “APPID1,APPID2”

}’

7. After the system successfully deletes the application, it will respond to the request with the following output:

{

  “message”: “Deleted successfully.”

}

8. It is also important for the developers to fetch the concurrency details after the test case execution process. By entering the following code, you will be able to complete this process:

curl -u “YOUR_LAMBDATEST_USERNAME:YOUR_LAMBDATEST_ACCESS_KEY” -X GET https://mobile-api.lambdatest.com/mobile-automation/api/v1/org/concurrency

9. Based on the type of application undergoing the development process, the developers and testers might need to share important details regarding the built or test links. LambdaTest provides a native feature that allows this process by entering the following cURL command:

curl ‘https://api.lambdatest.com/lshs/api/v1.0/share-item/generate-sharable-link’   -H ‘authorization: Bearer <Bearer Token>’   –data-raw ‘{“entityIds”:[“123456″],”entityType”:”App Automation Build”,”expiresAt”:7}’

In this regard, we also advise the app developers to go through the official documentation of Appium and LambdaTest to gain further information about all the features and methods available with this software. This knowledge will also help them to find additional features that can be relevant depending on the requirements of their application development project. The official websites also provide adequate information regarding the troubleshooting of some other common errors that can arise during these processes.

The Final Verdict

What we discussed in this article will allow the application developers to boost the capabilities of their mobile app testing processes. We also understood how the developers can benefit by utilizing the full potential of modern automation test cases. In this regard, we would like to emphasize on the importance of gaining more information about all the recent automation testing trends and innovations. It is also crucial to constantly update the company data regarding the target audience’s requirements. This is a critical piece of information that will allow the app developers to customize the app infrastructure to serve a wider audience section. Finally, we would advise the app developers to carefully choose the automation testing framework as it will have a massive role in boosting the company’s productivity. Some factors that the testers can consider include their own preferences and project requirements.