Moon TechnoLabs

1
Xamarin.Forms vs. Xamarin Native How To Choose
The One You Need?
2
Table of Contents

• 1) An overview
• 2) The Differences
• Another difference Functionalities

3
Introduction

• When you consider cross-platform development
  tools, Xamarin comes out on top as the gold
  standard. Then again, after deciding to build
  apps in Xamarin and C, you have to make another
  choice. You need to choose between Xamarin.Forms
  and Xamarin Native. So, how will you know which
  one of these two is perfect for you? If you
  continue reading, then youll find out.
• Android and iOS are the two most influential
  players in the mobile app market. They dominate
  the entire game. As a result, business companies
  need to come up with applications that can meet
  the diverse requirements of each OS. Releasing
  native mobile apps for Google Play Store and
  Apple App Store can be a long and expensive
  procedure, even if you work with the best Xamarin
  app development company. Besides, every business
  company doesnt have enough time or the necessary
  funds to develop native mobile apps. Thats why
  cross-platform frameworks gained the popularity
  that they enjoy today.

4

• When you opt for cross-platform app development
  services for mobile devices, you let your
  organization add its presence in both Android and
  iOS markets. Microsoft recently acquired Xamarin,
  as its one of the best frameworks for
  cross-platform app development. Its full of
  features, and its agile as well as
  cost-effective. These aspects make it the ideal
  choice for business companies to build
  cross-platform smartphone applications.
• If you never paid attention to Xamarin mobile app
  development before, then its time to do so now.
  However, you may not be able to decipher the
  purposes served by Xamarin.Forms and Xamarin
  Native. A renowned Xamarin app development
  company knows which one to choose. Thats why
  they wish to enlighten you with their knowledge.
  There are several factors to consider before you
  decide.

5
An overview

• App developers often use the word Xamarin
  Native or Xamarin Traditional instead of
  Xamarin.Android or Xamarin.iOS. Its a toolkit
  for cross-platform app development purposes.
  Developers use it to create mobile applications
  via C and .NET frameworks. The
  platform-independent codes of the Xamarin Native
  applications remain stored inside a Portable
  Class Library or a shared project. The tools,
  including Xamarin.Android, Xamarin.Mac and
  Xamarin.iOS help in implementing native user
  experience and platform-specific functionalities.
• Xamarin.Forms, on the other hand, is an advanced
  version of Xamarin Native. It allows developers
  to write one XAML to target several platforms at
  the same time. The applications developed using
  Xamarin.Forms possess all the features and
  functionalities of the Xamarin platform. With it,
  developers can write business logic in C. They
  can also define UI in code or in XAML format. In
  doing so, its possible to share it between
  platforms.

6
The Differences

• Here are a few differences between Xamarin.Forms
  and Xamarin Native that will help you in making
  the right decision for your project.
• (1) App development time One of the main reasons
  why Xamarin Native gets so much attention from
  the providers of Xamarin development services is
  that they can share the amount of base code
  between the platforms. This feature reduces the
  development time significantly and increases the
  speed of the process.
• However, the maximum limit of code sharing is
  only 75. Things tend to get a little more
  interesting with Xamarin.Forms. The rest of the
  code that the developers cant share in
  Xamarin.Platform is the native UI code.
  Xamarin.Forms let developers use one XAML code
  for all the UI of all platforms. Understandably,
  code sharing increases to almost 100. As a
  result, creating an app using Xamarin.Forms
  decrease the time required.

7

• (2) The complexity of the UI The complicatedness
  of an apps user interface and graphics are two
  crucial factors. Developers can share the UI code
  among multiple platforms by using Xamarin.Forms,
  as already mentioned earlier. It sets a few
  limitations to the complexity of the UI that the
  developers can implement easily. As
  Xamarin.Platform allows developers to create UI
  specific to every platform, it simplifies the
  task of adding more intricate graphical
  representations and animations. A few things work
  perfectly for one platform, but they may not
  perform adequately for another. Naturally,
  introducing alterations becomes mandatory.
  Xamarin.Platform possesses the necessary
  flexibility to do it. Therefore, Xamarin Native
  is what an app developer would choose to create
  an app with a complex UI and intense graphics.
• (3) The cost of development It isnt only about
  the time required to build an application. The
  expenses incurred during the process are also a
  deciding factor. So, if you choose Xamarin.Forms,
  then you should look for the providers of Xamarin
  development services that specialize in .NET
  development. A .NET developer has the skills
  needed to create a stunning app. If you pick
  Xamarin Native, however, then youll need a
  developer with experience in both native
  platforms and write high-quality code for the UI
  of each. Understandably, your expenses will
  increase. So, you should go for Xamarin.Forms if
  youre working with a tight budget.

8

• (4) Maintenance and updates As Xamarin.Forms
  share almost every bit of the code for all
  platforms it becomes clear that maintaining and
  updating the app regularly will be easier. Its
  mainly because only one code will take care of
  all the updates. With Xamarin.Platform,
  developers have to pay attention to the base code
  and then move on to the individual code sets for
  the platform individually. There arent any
  unified methods of doing them all at once. It
  adds more time and expenses to the maintenance
  and update process. Xamarin.Forms is a much more
  feasible option for apps that need regular
  updates.

9
Another difference Functionalities

• There are times when you need your app to gain
  access to a devices native features. However, a
  few features are present in some platforms but
  absent in another. In such a situation, if you
  want to use these features in the platforms that
  they work on, one Xamarin.Forms base code wont
  be enough. Xamarin Native, on the other hand, can
  give the developers access to these features in
  specific platforms while the others work
  differently. Apps with different functionalities
  for various platforms will work better if created
  using Xamarin.Platform.

10

• THANKS
• Original Source
• https//www.moontechnolabs.com/blog/xamarin-forms-
  vs-xamarin-native-how-to-choose-the-one-you-need/