Results Also Suggest Decline of Windows App Development and Testing on Mobile Device and Desktop
REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—February 11, 2014—Sencha, a leader in powering HTML5 development for desktop and mobile applications, today announced the results of a survey of more than 2,000 business application developers that assessed the types of applications that developers are building, the technologies they’re using, as well as the devices they’re supporting. The results highlight the continued migration of business app developers to HTML5, as well as reinforce the arrival of a multi-device app development world. Additionally, statistics point to a decline in Microsoft desktop development, coupled with a lack of commitment to Microsoft tablets and phones.
Business app developers continue to face a fragmented device landscape, with growing trends such as “bring your own device” (BYOD) increasing the diversity of the devices and platforms that business end users operate. App management and app security—and making the correct development choices to enable these easily—remain key challenges for the industry.
“Our survey results are in line with our anecdotal experiences and our business growth over the last 12 months. HTML5 is a thriving development technology solving hard problems for developers who are increasingly targeting a multi-device, multi-platform world,” said Michael Mullany, CEO of Sencha. “HTML5 developers have higher loyalty to their chosen technology than native mobile developers and are focusing on that technology for their future work.”
h3. Majority of Developers Support Multi-Device Apps
One of the key findings of the survey illustrates that developers are no longer in the camp of either desktop or mobile app development, with more than 50 percent of developers supporting both desktop and mobile experiences for their primary applications. According to the survey:
* The median developer supports five device types;
* Typical developers now support their applications on Windows classic, MacOS, iPhone, iPad and at least one Android phone; and
* Only 30 percent of developers target desktop platforms exclusively.
h3. Business App Developers Have Migrated to HTML5, and are Loyal to it
More than 60 percent of the developers surveyed said that they have already migrated to HTML5 and hybrid development for their primary applications, with more than 70 percent of developers stating that they are doing more with HTML5 than last year, and expect to do even more in 2014.
h3. Windows and Microsoft Mobile Development Trends Down
While Windows classic for desktop continues to be the top app development platform, survey results point to a decline, with 30 percent of respondents dropping support for it. Developers also show a preference for standards-based technologies like JavaScript, foregoing single-vendor languages like Google’s Dart and Microsoft’s TypeScript. The survey also highlights a testing gap discrepancy on Windows devices:
* 23 percent of developers support applications on Windows Phone 8, but only 15 percent test their apps on the device.
* Similarly, 21 percent of developers support applications for Windows Tablet, but only 13 percent test on the device.
h3. Demographics
The survey sample comprised two thirds full-time developers or designer/developers, with one-third managing development teams or holding technical roles such as Architect or CTO. Geographic diversity was balanced with a third of the sample taken each from North America, Europe and Rest of World. The survey sample was also evenly balanced across application types with B2B, B2E, B2C and ISV/SaaS providers all with a substantial percentage of the sample.
