Native application refers to the development of a mobile application for a single platform only. The application is built using computer programming languages and tools that are explicit to a single platform. For example, you can develop a native Android application using Java or Kotlin and select Swift and Objective-C for iOS applications.
Native mobile apps don’t run in the browser, unlike websites and web applications. You’ll need to download them from specific app stores like the Apple App Store and Google Play. Once installed, you can easily access any application just by tapping its icon on your device screen.
Benefits :
o Native Apps live on the device and are accessed through icons on the device home screen.
o They can take full advantage of all the device features — they can use the camera, the GPS, the accelerometer, the compass, the list of contacts, and so on. They can also incorporate gestures (either standard operatingsystem gestures or new, and app-defined gestures).
o Native apps can use the device’s notification system and can work offline.
o Publishers can make use of push-notifications, alerting users every time a new piece of content is published or when their attention is required.
o Native Apps maintain UI design of each operating system, thus they offer the best user experience. For example, a Native App can have a left-aligned header in Android and a center-aligned header in iOS.
o Redistribution is easy, as it is found in app store.
Disadvantages :
o High cost for building the app : Native apps developed for one platform will not run on another platform. An App built for Android will not run on iOS. We need to build a different App altogether for iOS. Because of this reason, we need to maintain multiple versions of the App.
o Even though you might publish native Apps, you’ll want to keep the mobile website well maintained, as mobile brings more traffic. So maintenance is higher.