It's 2017 and I have a great (new) mobile app idea. I need to make a prototype quickly and would like to get to market quickly. Android and iOS make up 99% of the market share - 86% Android, 13% iOS. Is it a given that I have to support both right out of the box, or should I start with one or the other? Android has a higher market share, but are their other factors I should include in my decision like marketing effectiveness, entry to market, etc?
I'm going to be that guy. Sorry.<p>Are you sure it's a new idea? Have you really searched the 2million+ apps out there to be sure? Truly new and original ideas are rare, most things you can do on a mobile have been tried at some point in the last 10 years. Check again, and learn from what others have done.<p>Have you validated the idea? I don't mean asked your mates if they like it. I mean have you got someone to give you money as a pre-order?<p>Do you know exactly who your market is and how you'll reach them? Putting something on the app store is not enough, it'll vanish without trace. You need a marketing channel outside the app store that can get to your target market and tell them about the app.<p>Have you tested that marketing channel? Personally I would do this <i>before</i> writing any code. If the marketing channel doesn't work then you need to find that out first and find one that does work. Don't worry about advertising vapourware, if people really want your app they'll wait a bit (see Kickstarter for evidence).<p>Unless, of course, this is a side project that is never intended to make serious money. If so, then pick whatever technology and platform you want to learn (I'd second React Native as a tech to learn). Market sizes don't matter if you've got no customers and no channel.
The report summarized here (for Q2-2016):<p><a href="http://bgr.com/2016/07/20/ios-vs-android-developers-profits-app-store-google-play/" rel="nofollow">http://bgr.com/2016/07/20/ios-vs-android-developers-profits-...</a><p>shows the Android store with twice as many downloads but half as much revenue. The importance of this is going to vary depending on specifics about your application - does it need a strong network effect to deliver value, or is it valuable for a solo user?
I build for the web so I'm obviously biased, but have you considered building a web application?<p>If your app doesn't use device features that are not exposed to the browser, building a progressive web app (<a href="https://developers.google.com/web/progressive-web-apps/" rel="nofollow">https://developers.google.com/web/progressive-web-apps/</a>) will save you a lot of effort, help you get to market faster, and spend far less money on user acquisition than a native app. On iOS, PWAs look and feel no different from regular websites. On Android, you get access to native-like features, including support for loading the app offline, push notifications, the ability to install the app to the homescreen, a separate entry in the task switcher, etc.<p>I wouldn't build something like Snapchat or Instagram as a webapp, simply because building those experiences in the browser and getting them <i>just right</i> is still kinda hard. However, most applications aren't Snapchat or Instagram, and a prototype certainly doesn't need that level of spit and polish.<p>You might still choose to build a native app somewhere down the line, but starting with a webapp gives you a chance to evaluate your idea and get something working in the hands of your users very quickly.
How much do you want to spend to get started? It only costs a simple one time $25 developer fee for android, for ios its $100/year. If you are just getting your feet wet going android is much cheaper, then if you make money on android you have a budget to get a mac with xcode, an ios device and the $100/year fee to write for ios.
I'm in the same boat. Planning to go iOS first, since I'm an iOS developer and don't know Android. Go with what you are most comfortable developing.<p>React Native might also be a good choice. I was pretty impressed with what it could do on iOS, but I had challenges getting it to work on Android.
Use React Native which will help you to make for both platforms faster, here is a good tutorial to start with: <a href="https://reactjs.co/react-native-convention/" rel="nofollow">https://reactjs.co/react-native-convention/</a>
As a sole developer who recently released my first mobile app, I can't comment on your specific use case or generalize about the market as a whole, since I don't have significant experience. That said, I chose to use React Native and release to both iOS and Android. After three months without doing any serious spending on marketing, my iOS version had an order of magnitude higher installs than my Android version. I suspect this may derive from differences between Apple and Google's search ranking algorithms. It's a moot point for me, since React Native supports both platforms, but the single data point may help you.
So, I don't have direct experience, but folks talk to me, so I have anectdata. ;-)<p>If your revenue model is app sales, go IOS.<p>If your revenue model is mobile advertising, you probably want to go Android.<p>Beyond that, it gets complicated, but I think the following are valid (though your specific user segment might flip the other way on each of these):<p>Freemium models (ie. a free app that you can upgrade to a paid version) should <i>probably</i> go Android first.<p>Free with in-app purchases (eg. F2P games) should also probably go Android first, but it is not as clear-cut.<p>If your revenue model is transactional (eg. flash sales), go iOS first.<p>No matter what, list your assumptions (that users <i>have the problem</i> your app will solve, that you know the language <i>they use</i> to think about and describe their problem, that they are actively <i>looking</i> for a solution, that they will be willing to <i>pay</i> to solve their problem, that they will be interested in <i>your</i> solution, that they will be <i>willing to pay</i> for your solution, any assumptions about their price sensitivity, your assumptions about reaching potential customers to make them aware of your solution, your effectiveness at turning "lookers" into "buyers"), and aggressively validate and de-risk all those assumptions.<p>Good luck!