Since we develop iOS apps here at tCognition, we wanted to drop some knowledge on how to develop iOS apps for beginners with these ‘top-10’ basics. Apple iOS devices have revolutionized the world with their capabilities, innovations and user experience. When the first generation iPhone was launched on June 29, 2007, it revolutionized the concept of the what a cell phone could do. Since then Apple has launched many iOS devices like iPod Touch, iPad and Apple Watch. We specialize in developing applications in the telematics industry ourselves, but this knowledge is universal.

Top 10 Beginner Basics To Develop iOS Apps

1. Get the right machine

To be an iOS app developer(to develop iOS apps) you must have an Apple Mac Machine with XCode IDE installed on it and an Apple Developer Member Account. One can download XCode for free from the App Store on any Mac Machine meeting its installation requirements. XCode is all-in-one Software Development Kit & Integrated Development Environment (IDE) which comes with various simulators and instruments to check memory leakages, and sandboxes where a developer can develop iOS apps in the real environment before submitting the developed app to the App Store.

2. Know the languages

A knowledge of programming languages like Objective C and/or Swift* (a superset of C++ programming languages) is critical. These languages have emerged as powerful tools to build Object Oriented Apps. Swift is an open source scripting language developed by Apple to make the developers life easier.

3. Enroll in the Apple Developer Program

It costs $99 / per year to enroll in Apple’s Developer Program and $299 / per year for Apple Developer Enterprise Program annually.

4. Harvest Your Ideas

Every application starts with an idea. Strive to simplify your work and what you create. Make sure you write down and white board every idea that comes to mind. It is always an idea which leads to a great invention.

5. Competition and Usership 

• Competition – what other apps of similar type are available on the market?
• Usership – what can we do to add more to facilitate our users and get huge set of end users?

6. Requirement Gathering

With a clear vision of what we want to develop we can get the best quality output. Requirement gathering is an important part of the app development process. Decides on what input parameters the development team will work from is important.

7. Keep the User Experience in Mind

Designing not only deals with the User Interface but also deals with the User Experience. The designer develops the blueprints of the app and its flow by generating mockups, storyboards, images and clickable icons.

8. Test and Bug Fixing

This is a critical phase where the app is tested thoroughly to make it bug free, so as to meet the expectations of end user. Be sure to “drive the product into the ground” (use the mobile product to every extent imaginable) to make sure you get all the bugs out.

9. Create a prototype

A prototype is early sample, model to test a concept or process. Prototype serves to provide specifications for a real working system and helps in rapid development. Prototype shows actual flow of the application along with UI. It also give a chance to user/clients to take a precise look at applications design and make any changes if required.

10. Submit Your App to the App Store

After entering the required information, choose which build you wish to upload via XcodeApp and the Store team will review your app. The review process generally takes around 10-15 days to complete. The app will be tested based on Apples Guidelines during this review process. If an app passes review process, the app will be available on App Store!

About the Author – Suraj MIrajkar is tCognition’s Senior iOS Develper on tCognition’s staff. For more information about tCognition’s application development services, ask for Suraj at info@tcognition.com.