Frogs Field Guide – deciding on a platform

As we delved deeper into scoping the project, however, we decided to focus the first build of the application on the iOS platform. Here's why...

We based our decision on a number of factors.

First, when we started the build our research highlighted that, in Australia, the larger market share was held by iOS. This stat has since shifted, with Android now having the larger percentage of the worldwide market. Even though the numbers are changing, however, the engagement on the iOS platform has remained strong.

Second, Apple's streamlined developer experience has attracted great developers to the iOS space, often resulting in a more enjoyable and meaningful user experience. For now, the nature of this experience means that many developers have stayed in the iOS space, continuing to build a rich market place of high-quality apps.

Third, it seems that the strict framework Apple have created for their apps and market place is working to the benefit (for the most part) of both users and developers. It's resulted in a greater integrity in iOS apps and the Apple Store maintains a high level of quality.

The final reason we chose iOS is that a very large percentage of mobile visitors to our website over the past year are on the iOS platform. Although this may not automatically translate to app downloads, it does give us an idea of our mobile audience and the platform they are engaged with.