Mobile proxies are a reliable tool for testing applications

How to test mobile and web applications using mobile proxies
Mobile proxies are a reliable tool for testing applications. They are actively used by testers and developers in their work. 
All that mobile proxies do is allow access to an application from different countries and regions. Theoretically, you can do without them, but then the company will have to get a staff of thousands of remote employees who will perform their tasks smoothly. This approach is not practiced, as it is completely replaced by the use of mobile proxies.
You can talk a lot about the advantages of using mobile proxies, but it is important to get into the essence of testing as an integral process of application development. Then everything will become obvious.

What is application testing like?

• Application development and testing are two complementary processes. Testing is the work of detecting bugs that are not visible at the development stage. 
  Usually, testing is divided into two parts - during development and after the development has been completed.
  Testing an application during development is a kind of sprint. It is so-called, testing in sprints. Essentially, it's a continuous process improvement: the developer has done some of the work, and after that, he or his colleague, the test engineer, does the testing. This leads to the fact that development and testing are interconnected, running in parallel, resulting in time savings.
• Testing after the development stage is completed. In this case, the developer writes the code without the participation of the tester. In essence, it is like proofreading a text by a proofreader: the copywriter writes the text, finishes the work, and then the editor makes his corrections. Usually, this approach is used when developing large applications intended for a wide audience. Testers check the front-end, back-end, API, visual, and other elements that contain errors.
  
  Who is in charge of testing?
  
  Testers are in charge of testing. In the professional environment, they are called QA engineers (i.e. product quality assurance engineers). They are full-fledged IT specialists who work closely with developers. To make the development process efficient, a test engineer, along with developers, participates in meetups, customer calls, and other events.
  The function of a tester is not just to detect a bug, but also to describe it correctly so that the developer can make the necessary changes.
  There is a common opinion that because of the relatively low entry threshold, those who cannot do programming go into testing. However, it is not so. Testing is a separate sphere of activity with its gradation, just like in programming - trainee, junior, middle, senior, lead. An experienced tester quickly and efficiently looks for bugs, writes correct bug reports, and significantly speeds up project delivery.
  
  What is the difference between mobile and web applications?
  
  In simple words, web applications are websites and programs for computers and laptops. Apps are solutions that we download to smartphones and tablets on Google Play and App Store.
  Web application development involves creating a framework using HTML and CSS, and adding interactivity through JavaScript. The main purpose of testing is to optimize user experience and identify serious bugs. For example, the developers made a login and password input form that allows entering Cyrillic characters. This leads to confusion in the database. The task of the tester is to detect this and describe it in a bug report (this is the name for a detailed and thorough description of bugs).
  Mobile applications are similar to programs on computers. They can be used without browsers. Users usually have dozens or hundreds of apps installed and access them through icons on the desktop or by responding to notifications.
  Some users use web applications on mobile devices as well, even with mobile apps. Therefore, testers also pay attention to their correct operation on devices with small screens.
  
  How do you test web applications?
  
  Application testing involves several steps:
• Usability testing. This refers to the design, color combinations, checking the loading speed of the site, and the like. For example, a customer has an equipment manufacturing plant, and he wants the site to display a large, high-resolution photo. But it takes an average of 4 seconds to load. The tester will see this, describe this bug in detail, and the developer will have to make corrections to the code, for example, reduce the weight and move the code that controls the loading of the image to the end so that other elements of the page load faster.
• Code validity checks. There is a misconception that the most important thing in code is that it works. In fact, in a professional environment, it is common to write optimized code that takes less space and complies with industry standards.
• Cross-browser testing. Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Safari are well-known browsers, also many users prefer such solutions as DuckDuckGo, Vivaldi, and Brave. Theoretically, a web application should work correctly on all browsers, however, practically such a question is agreed with the customer.
• Functional testing is aimed at determining whether the application copes with its task. First of all, performance testing is determined, and easily noticeable errors are identified.
• Installation testing is to check the installation process. At this stage, it is important to make sure that the installation goes smoothly and is possible on different devices. The fact that we can download and install a game on any of hundreds and thousands of smartphones is the result of successful testing at the installation testing stage.
• Load testing is done to check whether the application works properly when it is used by a large number of users. For example, a company is developing an app for a bank that has 5 million customers. The testers have to make sure that the application will work correctly if hundreds of thousands and millions of users connect to it at one point in time.
• Stress testing is aimed at evaluating the performance of the application at the time of peak loads.  For example, the maximum number of connections at one moment for a banking application is 200 thousand users. However, in certain cases (for example, during a sharp change in currency exchange rates), peaks of up to half a million users can be observed. At the stage of stress testing, it is determined how well the application copes with its work under such conditions.
• Security testing - checks confidentiality and integrity, in particular, great attention is paid to the security of user information.
• Compatibility testing - checks how well the application works on different devices and operating systems. For example, today there are a large number of versions and localizations of Android OS, as well as thousands of different smartphones and tablets. Web application compatibility testing also pays attention to the version of the operating system, as well as the browser and its version.
• Localization testing - checking if the app works correctly for different languages and regions. 
• Loading speed - the less, the better, which is especially relevant for "heavy" applications. This parameter is especially relevant if you plan to promote the application in search engines. The industry standard is a loading time of no more than 400 milliseconds.

How are mobile apps tested?

• The rapid development of mobile technologies has led to a high demand for mobile apps, and strong competition requires perfect design and flawless performance.
  It all starts with usability, that is, checking how the app looks like. The usability is checked, all the buttons, forms, and drop-down lists are functional, and it is assessed how well the application corresponds to the prototype (the original design).
• The next step is to check the screen size. This is especially relevant in the case of mobile applications, given the presence of a huge number of devices with very different sizes.
• Checking the correctness of resource utilization. In particular, the processor load, RAM consumption, and power consumption are determined. In simple words, the application should not overload the device, but maximize the use of its resources.
• Checking the stability of operation. Applications are not always used in an ideal and calm environment, for example, there may be external interruptions, device crashes, and repeated incorrect termination of work.
  
  Testing plan
  
  To begin with, the purpose of testing is defined, and tasks are described so that the tester understands what he/she will have to work with.
• Not only the main but all structural elements of the system under test are described.
• A set of tools recommended for testing is defined. 
• The period for which the tester should cope with the task is defined.
• Success criteria of the testing process are specified, i.e. a set of characteristics, when the application can be considered to have passed the test.
  Usually, a company has a kind of "corporate culture" that defines a set of testing tools and ways of communication with developers and other specialists. In particular, Trello, Asana, Jira, or other solutions can be used for communication.
  
  Why use mobile proxies when testing applications?
  
  Testing mobile apps is not as easy as web apps. You have to simulate the use of different devices with different settings. Mobile proxies come to the rescue. They allow you to test how an application works for users located in different countries and regions.
  Using reliable mobile proxies from KeyProxy you can test any application, simulating access from any region. Dedicated channels, different cellular network operators, IP addresses, and other options are available to you.
  The company has been operating since 2017 and offers true unlimited. In case of anything - money back for any reason.
  Stable uptime of 99.8%, 24/7 management, and a loyal pricing policy bring proxies from KeyProxy to the business level!