The document discusses enhancing mobile app quality through manual testing. It covers topics like the versatile nature of mobile apps, how to test on actual devices, common bug types, and case studies. Testing on different devices and configurations is important due to variations in screen size, inputs, and other factors. Usability testing is also paramount to ensure good user experiences and high app ratings.

1. Enhancing Mobile Apps Quality
Manual Testing Revisited
Pre s e nte r : Sa ura bh Ag a rwa l, Mind fire
So lutio ns

2. About Me:
• Saurabh Agarwal, Software QA Engineer,
Mindfire Solutions
• Skills: Mobile and Web Application Testing
• Contact:
Skype: mfsi_saurabh
Email: saurabha@mindfiresolutions.com

3. Focus areas for today
• The versatile nature and ecosystem of mobile
apps
• A peek inside the technology behind the
curtains
• Getting started with mobile app testing - Pick
up that device!
• What are those "bugs" actually?
• Avoiding the extremes while Reporting Issues

4. Why Failing Hurts?
“App store ratings are extremely important to
us. You can launch a beautifully designed native
application, but if it crashes, then it will receive a
poor rating and users will go elsewhere. Our goal
is to launch nothing short of a 4.5 star app every
time - no exceptions. Anyone can read your app
store rating. There’s no way to hide poor quality
in the world of mobile.”
- Michael Croghan, Mobile Solutions Architect,
USA Today

5. The versatile nature and ecosystem of
mobile apps
 More Combinations
 Screen size
 Input methods
 Access to personal data
 Competition for resources
 Use in all types of situations
 Time Crunch
 Require constant correct updates
 Guidelines and App Store Submissions
 Emotions

6. A peek inside the technology behind
the curtains
• When testing Web / Desktop apps we are not
usually concerned about the inside of the
physical device.
• In case of device apps, it’s important to
understand what is inside the device so that
we can test apps thoroughly and understand
how they might fail in ways that a PC or web
app will not.

7. On the outside
• Hard case (for structural support and holding the device together)
• High-resolution touch screen (for viewing and interacting with apps)
• Speakers and microphone (to listen to sounds and input sound)
• Volume control and mute buttons (to control volume and turn off the
ringer)
• Buttons:
• – Navigation (to set your OS to a known state, go back, etc.)
• – Sleep/wake/lock (for when the device is not in use)
• – Some devices may also have a full keyboard
• Camera (to capture images and video)
• Headphone/speaker jack (for speakers, microphones and other
accessories)
• Connector (for charging and accessories)

8. On the inside
• Logic Board
• Memory
• Battery
• SIM Card
• Memory Card

9. More Stuff!
• WiFi Antenna
• GPS Antenna
• Bluetooth
• NFC (near-field communication)
• Cellular netword antennas for data and voice
(GSM, CDMA, GPRS, 3G)
• Cameras (Front, Back)
• Vibration motor

10. And more stuff!
• Ambient light
censor
• Proximity Sensor
• Gesture sensor
• Accelerometer
• Magnetometer
• Gyroscope
• Barometer
• Temperature sensor
• Humidity sensor
• Fingerprint scanner
• Heart Rate sensor
• Hall Sensor

11. Done with the Dissection ;)

12. Getting started with mobile app
testing - Pick up that device!
• Use the software in a way you expect your
users to
• Gather user information (including yourself!)
• The first launch test – First impressions
• Something that makes you feel uncomfortable
using the app, enough to make you feel bored,
frustrating, clueless enough to delete the app?
• Never blame yourself for feeling confused
because of technology.

13. What are those "bugs" anyway?
• James Bach: “A bug is something that bugs
someone who matters.”
 Clear Program Malfunction
 Something that annoys User
• It may be functionally correct—that is, it
meets a specification—but how the user feels
about the app is important.

14. Watch out for these device specific areas
• Usability and Ergonomics
• User Interface
• Functionality – Including Crashes and Hangs
• Orientation and Sensors
• Network Connectivity
• Resource Starving
• Installation testing
• Data security
• Performance
• Cross platform tests
• Interrupts
• How the user “feels” about it

15. Case Study – By Jonathan Kohl
One of the most difficult
intermittent bugs that I had
to track down in a mission-critical
application had to
do with a freeze up, or
gimbal lock. The devices
would freeze up, (requiring
a hard reboot) during sales
presentations, product
demonstrations and beta
tests. This was
unacceptable, because
how do you sell an app
when it behaves like this?

16. Case Study – A Restaurant Search
Consider that trip to a local restaurant and how mobile technology has become
enmeshed in that experience. How many of the following activities can you relate to?
•Searching for a restaurant nearby (using location-based services or GPS)
•Selecting a restaurant based on cuisine, location or price.
•Reading user reviews and ratings to help make a decision.
•Plotting out and following directions to the restaurant on a map.
•After arriving, checking in to a social networking application, alerting people in your
network of your current location.
•Searching the web to answer questions about the items on the menu.
•Translating a meal that is in a foreign language.
•Checking the nutritional information for a meal.
•Once the food arrives, taking a picture of it and uploading it to your social
networking profile.
•Friends commenting about the photo and your meal.
•Throughout the meal, posting and responding to comments about the meal on your
social networks.
•At the conclusion of a meal, posting positive, neutral or negative comments about
the experience to restaurant review applications.
•If the experience was poor, ranting on public social media.

17. Usability Testing – Again!!
• Paramount for device apps
• Functionality
• Layout and Design
• Interaction
• Bottom-line - To get to the top of the App
Store, you’ll either need to launch an amazing
app, or be among the best in your field in
terms of usability.

18. Fine Tuning the approach
• Need to consider a testing strategy that
combines different testing options that
together provide you with the best overall
testing result that balances the tradeoff
between cost, quality, and time-to-market.

19. Questions?

20. References
• http://go.utest.com/iOS7tips-ebook.html
• Tap Into Mobile Application Testing by
Jonathan Kohl -
https://leanpub.com/testmobileapps
• http://www.ministryoftesting.com/2013/06/g
oing-mobile-testing-beyond-the-device/

21. Thank You!
PS – Your Feedback is important!
