In the digital world, trends are transient and fads change at an incredibly rapid pace. This is especially true of mobile app development where technologies and trends are continuously evolving to provide bigger, better and faster experiences to users. It is expected that by 2021, the mobile app market revenue will surpass the mark of $693 billion. From Progressive Web Apps to Payment Apps and the rise of wearable tech, much is going on in the world of mobile. 2020 is here and the dominant mobile app trends for the year are crystal clear. Here’s taking a look at some of the top trends to watch out for in 2020:
Technology is all about convenience. Mobile apps bring the world to your fingertips, literally. And when it comes to digital payment, mobile payment apps have grown significantly in the past couple of years and 2020 is touted to be a significant year for many advances in this technology.
Mobile wallets are one of the fastest-growing segments in digital payments. Apps like PayPal, Venmo, PayTM, Google Pay, Square Cash etc. have enabled effortless money exchanges in a matter of seconds. However, one growing concern with mobile payment apps is security and protecting your transactions from hackers and fraudsters.
Samsung is soon launching a foldable phone with OLED display. This means the operating systems are gearing up to make the most of this technology to improve the overall UX and user journey. A foldable phone is certainly going to be the buzzword of the year as far as phone tech goes and mobile app development strategy will be redefined to accommodate this trend.
Samsung reports suggest that hundreds of popular Android apps have already been optimized for the Galaxy fold. These include Amazon Prime Video, Spotify, Facebook, MS Office, Twitter etc.
The key benefit of an unfolded device is the instant enlargement of the screen to offer the customer or user an immersive experience, For instance, if you enjoy a touch of sports betting and are live betting using your phone, you can get a more detailed and precise view of the odds on a foldable device.
The on-demand economy is in its prime and with it apps like Uber, Lyft, Grab, Instacart, VistaJet, Zomato, Swiggy, DoorDash etc are flourishing. Any business be it a plumber a home beautician, a baker or a doctor can benefit from an on-demand app. So what’s an on-demand app?
An on-demand service app is a platform that connects users with various services with a few taps. It satisfies an instant need, be it for food delivery, taxis or watching a favourite show.
Launched in 2015, Progressive Web Apps (PWA) are believed to be the hottest trend revolutionizing not just mobile apps but the web experience. These are a new generation of web apps that provide the best of both worlds – web and mobile on any device, at a blazing speed. Gartner has predicted that 50% of consumer-facing apps will be PWAs by 2020. From reliability, speed, offline access, to increased engagement, PWAs have taken the virtual world by storm with their stellar features.
ML and AI are not just buzzwords but a dominant tech trend that continues to ride the popularity wave in mobile app development. Chatbot technology is thriving and some of the best conversational bots use a combination of AI, ML and Natural Language Processing to provide a seamless conversational flow. From image and voice-based search, voice/image recognition system in apps to many other features such as localization, absolute subject detection, real-time language detection, and the potential is endless.
AI and ML have a broad range of applications from digital authentication, security, fraud detection and real-time analytics perspective. Ultimately, AI will be integrated with 5G smartphones in the coming years to bring more features and functions to users.
The best way to predict the future is to invent it. The next best way is to keep up with all the revolutionary trends and decide which one is best for you. Mobile phones and apps have taken over our lives, whether we like it or not and these trends are set to redefine the way we use these devices.