Any company providing mobile app development service is aware of the challenges involved in building apps in terms of time consumption and cost. This is why any new technology that helps to curb the cost and development time can have a significantly positive impact on the development process. Firebase has emerged as one of the reliable technologies for developers to reduce time and cost of development. This framework well equipped with creative elements can take away a lot of burden off the shoulders of developers.

In the course of this post, we are going to define Firebase and the myriad ways it benefits developers. Let’s start with the definition and a brief description of the framework before moving over to the benefits of Firebase.

What is Firebase And How It Works?

Firebase was launched in the April 2012 to be the only framework capable to allow users saving and syncing information across various user interfaces with the help of a real-time database that can be incorporated as an API. While this promise of syncing information through real-time database was the only promise with which Firebase made a start, just after two years when the framework was adopted by Google, it came out as a robust framework equipped to boot for modern app development environments.

Firebase can be defined as the mobile app development framework offering a real-time database allowing syncing information across user interfaces and customers in real time. Thanks to Firebase any update of an app can be accessed and made available by all users in real time. The great boost to user experience offered by this framework ultimately makes a positive impact on app ranking. This saves a lot of time and effort on the part of developers for configuring the servers for accommodating new updates.

Google after adopting the framework made it even better and introduced a lot of new features. Today for both Android and iOS mobile app developers, Firebase stands as a very powerful framework thanks to its core capability of allowing data-syncing with real-time database and a plethora of valuable features.

How Does it Work?

The real-time database that makes the core competence of Firebase framework can easily be incorporated as a ready to integrate API. Having the constant patronage of Google the framework is able to scale up as your app grows in traffic and information capacity. Firebase works as a sophisticated database that can meet your evolving needs as your application continues to grow.

The Key Benefits of Using Firebase

The core competence and strength of Firebase framework us already known to us. But after Google took it over in 2014, Firebase further got a boost with solid features and value-additions. Let us explain here some of the key benefits of Firebase that app developers should be aware of.

Real-Time Database

The real-time database is the core competence and strength of Firebase framework. Firebase allows you to sync the data of both offline and online sources through a NoSQL database. Apart from allowing the users to access data across both offline and online states if the app helps to collaborate on any information in real time. Let us have a look at some of the key benefits of this core capability of Firebase framework.

While the HTTP requests also update data across interfaces, they fail to update the data across user interfaces in real time. The Firebase real-time database allows updating information in real time with instant availability of an update across all users.

The Real-time Database SDK also helps users to access the data even without connectivity thanks to the local storage. As soon as the connectivity is restored the data in the local storage gets synced with the online state of the application.

Firebase Real-time Database makes it possible for the users to access the data across multiple interfaces and devices.

The database SDK of Firebase allows you to split the application data across several different databases inside the same app development project and define rules of access for each database.Hosting

Firebase comes ready and well equipped with an array of crucial services related to hosting. As Firebase is capable to accommodate production-ready web content, the developers only need to exercise a single command to send the static contents and app to a content delivery network or CDN. The entire process works quite effortlessly thanks to the inbuilt Firebase provisioning of SSL (Security Socket Layer) certificate, support for a custom domain, and access to Global CDN. Firebase is loaded with all the advanced and sophisticated tools and features required for hosting a web app or a static website.

Authentication

Firebase is loaded with every tool and feature you may require for state of the art authentication process. The authentication in Firebase comes loaded with ready to use UI libraries and SDKs and backend services. This helps developers confirming customers at ease while always maintaining the security to the optimum level.

Firebase authentication supports all the regular form fields relating to the username, email ids and passwords. The developers of apps built with Firebase have two choices. Either, they can allow users to sign in to the app through the Firebase UI based drop-in form or by using the Firebase Authentication SDK to integrate the sign-in form manually with the respective app.

Integrated Cloud Messaging

Firebase framework also comes with a cloud messaging solution that allows users sending messages without spending a penny. This also allows the app to send messages to the users notifying about any new update or needs. Furthermore, the integrated cloud messaging solution also helps developers directly connecting users as and when they need to make users aware of the pending app maintenance.

Integrated Test Lab

The integrated test lab of Firebase framework gives you total freedom from the concerns about third-party app testing service. Allowing developers to post the app on Google data centre, the integrated test lab helps to find issues, errors and bugs more easily. Typically the results of the test lab come with detailed images, logs and videos making it, even more, easier to find the loopholes in the code. The feature can also run continuously looking for imminent crashes and it doesn’t require creating a separate test code for the app.

User Notification

Firebase framework allows the company and the developers to stay in constant communication with the users through an integrated user notification feature. It works as a great adaptable platform equipped with all the programming required for a notification console to send messages to users.

Integrated Google Analytics

Firebase as a Google-sponsored API also offers access to Google Analytics for your mobile app. Thanks to integrated Google analytics the app administrators can easily monitor the user journey across a variety of devices. Furthermore, the integrated analytics also allows you to send mobile app data to BigQuery for more precise insights about user experience and user interactions.

Custom Messages To Push App Download

Increasing the app download number is one of the most crucial requirements for most mobile apps to stay profitable and to maintain growth. Firebase framework having the integrated capability to send custom messages through emails helps to spread the word of mouth and to influence your existing customers to download an app.

Robust Error And Crash Reporting

Firebase framework comes equipped with great crash and error reporting mechanism that can categorise the issues and errors based on the severity of the impact in user experience. This robust crash reporting feature actually helps developers to stay tuned to any potential chances of crashes that looks imminent.

Firebase Storage

Firebase framework also comes with a robust and powerful storage solution helping the developers to accommodate a variety of user-generated contents like images and videos that take a lot of storage space. Thanks to this feature users can easily transfer files and download the contents irrespective of the quality of the network. The feature is fully supported by Google cloud storage solution and offers a tremendously cost-competitive way to deal with user generated contents.

Links to Multiple Llatforms For Promotion

Firebase framework also accommodates links to leading social media platforms, email services and any other platforms used to connect users for promotions. Thanks to these integrated linking capacities the app comes as well-equipped to reach out to its audience.

Machine Learning

As we are explaining the benefits of the Firebase framework, it is important to note that developers can also take the advantage of latest Machine Learning technology to improve the user experience based on insights derived from user inputs and user interactions. The Machine Learning kit of the Firebase comes as a ready to use API useful for certain mobile app features such as face detection, natural language processing, text identification, scanning the barcodes, etc.

App Indexing

Firebase framework comes equipped with app indexing feature that helps you gain competitive advantage while trying to feature in Google search results. Thanks to this feature, whenever the search page shows any content that’s already there downloaded right in the app, by clicking on it the user will directly land on the downloaded content of the app. This will also show a pop-up message in case the user doesn’t have the app downloaded in his device yet.

In-App Advertising

Firebase framework is also equipped to the boot with some stealthy and robust in-app advertising features. The framework has AdMob that allows you to opt for advertisements to display in your app to help you increase revenue through ads. The same feature also offers a variety of templates to accommodate ads in your app.

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