Prepare for an App Clips Adventure!
Red Tseng, Senior iOS Developer at Cloud Interactive
As technology progresses and consequently makes lives easier, speed is the name of the game. Mobile technology has evolved to the point where we can quickly access all the information we need at our fingertips. With the iPhone, Apple has recently given developers another application design tool that enables users to take a sneak peak before downloading the full version of an application: App Clips.
Cloud Interactive recently collaborated with Carrefour in developing its new app, as well as the App Clips version. As a result, Carrefour was able to boost the app’s total downloads and usage, ultimately resulting in increased customer satisfaction. Red Tseng, Senior iOS Developer, was a member of that team and recently shared some of his thoughts in developing this tool, as well as how to ensure you have the fundamental development skills.
Introducing App Clips!
Red sees App Clips as a “sneak peak,” a fantastic way for users to access and experience an app’s features without first fully downloading the app. Several benefits of App Clips have made them a fan favorite:
- Fast: Users will be able to start and finish an experience from your app in seconds.
2. Compact Sized: App Clips take up less than 10Mb of phone memory.
3. Streamlined: Users can open and complete any task quickly — within seconds.
4. Enticing: App Clips quickly demonstrates the value of your app without users needing to download the full version.
However, Red points out its limitations:
- App Clips’ size should be less than 10MB for optimal performance.
- The App Clips can’t access frameworks such as Assets Library, Background Tasks, CallKit, CareKit, CloudKit, Contacts, Contacts UI, Core Motion, EventKit, EventKit UI, File Provider, File Provider UI, HealthKit, HomeKit, Media Player, Messages, Message UI, PhotoKit, ResearchKit, SensorKit, and Speech.
How do you access App Clips?
A key part of the App Clips experience is how you discover them. Trigger App Clips with any of the following methods outlined by Apple:
- NFC Tags
Users can tap their iPhone on NFC tags that you place at specific locations to launch an App Clip, even from the lock screen. - QR Codes
Place QR codes at specific locations to let users launch an App Clip by scanning the code with the Barcode reader or the Camera app. - Safari App Banner
When your webpage is configured with a Smart App Banner for App Clips, users can just tap to open it from there. - Link in Messages
When you enable sharing within your App Clip, users can send it via iMessage, and the person who receives it can open it right from Messages. - Place Card in Maps
When your App Clip is associated with a specific location, you can register your App Clip to appear on a place card in Maps so users can open it from there. - Recently Used App Clips
App Clips don’t clutter the Home Screen, but recently used App Clips can be found and launched from the Recents category of the new App Library.
Sounds great, but I’m new to this, so how do I first get better at development?
At Cloud Interactive, Red participates in the multitude of study groups and new technology sharing meetings to quickly grow his software knowledge and coding skills. To further increase his knowledge, he read Robert C. Martin’s Clean Code last month. He believes that one of the fastest ways to transfer knowledge and review code is to take advantage of teamwork skills such as pair programming. Cloud Interactive currently has 10 mobile developers, where pair programming is essential in building cohesive teams.
Another strategy that Red embraces is kata practice, which is an exercise in programming that helps programmers hone their skills through practice and repetition. He usually practices kata twice a week, using the TDD bowling game, Flutter BLoC, and ReactiveX subject kata in RxSwift and RxDart. Like a cup of great coffee, kata practice always refreshes Red!
Cool! Can you teach me how to do this?
Cloud Interactive recognizes the innovative nature of App Clips and its success with clients such as Carrefour. That’s why we’re looking into the best method to help you learn. Stay tuned for more details!
About Cloud Interactive
Cloud Interactive is an AI, Software Engineering, and Design consulting company founded in 2010.
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