Firebase vs Xamarin

Almost everyone these days owns a smartphone and a computer. Some people like one operating system while the others prefer the other one as everyone has different preferences. While it means a better user experience for the user’s things get complex and difficult for the developers as they have to go through different application development processes.

An amazing solution to this issue for the developers is to create something developed for once and runs on all. Cross-platform applications are what we are talking about.

Several platforms provide an opportunity to develop amazing cross-platform applications, making things easier for the developers. Firebase and Xamarin are two of the most competitive platforms for such purposes.

Here we will be discussing which of these is a better choice for you.

Firebase Overview

Whether you are a new developer or an experienced one, one thing that might always seem fascinating is using Firebase for the development process of your application. Well, it is one of the best platforms that you can use.

Firebase is an application development software provided by Google that enables developers to develop all kinds of applications while experiencing some of its amazing features and services.

Firebase Core Features

Firebase comes with a long list of features. Some of its amazing features are discussed below.

Google Analytics

One of the best things and often called the game-changer feature is Google Analytics. It is specifically made for people looking to grow their business online. It provides all the information about the users and traffic, which can help improve your business by improving the services and products.

Automatic scaling

Scaling means value for the growing platforms, and if scaling is manual, the whole process can be very hectic. Firebase ensures to keep things simple and easy by providing an automatic scaling feature. It ensures to provide the best experience for the developers and the users with the minimum number of updates while constantly synchronizing the data.

User community

Many people think that community does not matter. However, whenever there is some issue, it is the community that helps you out the most. Firebase does not have an amazing active user community on several social and technical platforms. In this way, you can get assistance for solving most of your issues, whether you are an experienced developer or a newbie.

Firebase Advantages

The following are some of the best advantages that Firebase brings along.

Time savings

With Firebase, a lot of time for developing the application is saved as many things are already done. Moreover, the need to manage different developer teams is reduced, which saves a lot of time.

Machine Learning Capabilities

When you use Firebase, you can implement Machine Learning techniques in your application using dedicated APIs. It makes the process of implementing ML easy and simple. At the same time, the applications become feature-rich.

Free to start

Firebase is free to start for the new developers. There are a lot of features that new developers can experience without even spending a penny. So, it can be an amazing way to start a professional development experience.

Xamarin Overview

Xamarin is a cross-platform application development tool that is owned by Microsoft. It uses C# for creating mobile applications along with using JavaScript and HTML. These applications not only work on all mobile devices, but they also work flawlessly on the web, making it an amazingly beneficial platform for developers.

Xamarin Core Features

Xamarin brings the following set of features for the developers.

Using features out of the scope of the application

There are a lot of features that are only available with their dedicated applications. However, Xamarin users can integrate those features within their application scope, making an amazingly functional and practical application. Some of these features include:

• Share
• Email and Phone
• Browser
• Text-to-Speech and a lot more.

Hardware and device access

Xamarin enables its developers to integrate some basic hardware features into the applications without any issues. It is something rarely found in cross-platform application development tools. The devices with such added functionality in the applications are:

• Battery
• Flashlight
• Sensors
• Vibration hardware
• Location and device information

Integrating Geolocation, Geocoding, and maps services into the application is also possible when using Xamarin. It makes good use of the GPS, Geographic code as well as the maps software.

Xamarin Advantages

Although Xamarin brings a lot of benefits for the users, here are some of the best:

Amazing API integration

When you are using Xamarin, you can use the same APIs to integrate with all of the applications. It means that there is no need to create newer APIs for every operating system where the application is going to run. It not only saves time but saves a lot of effort as well.

Shared codebase

Using Xamarin, you can use the same code multiple times in different applications with similar features. It is usually beneficial for creating a similar user interface for different platforms for the same applications. The brain here is the Xamarin Form Library.

Useful compiled code

Whenever you access or use any Native API, you can highly create efficient and well-performing code. While things get extremely easy here, it is also practically easy to create the device-specific code for applications as well as the mobile platform specific for the best user experience.

Conclusion

As a developer, every step matters a lot, and the first step matters the most. If you take a right first step for the process, the whole thing gets extremely easy and simple for you. Similarly, the first step taken wrong can make the whole process very difficult.

In the process of developing a web or mobile app, the first step is to select the platform, and if a wrong platform is selected, then your experience is going to get worse.

So, whenever you are going to select between Firebase and Xamarin, make sure that your decision is tailored according to your requirements. It is the only way by which you can expect to have an amazing experience.

FAQ