Top 10 Strategies For Mobile App Testing Across Networks and Carriers

At an estimated 1000 + mobile network operators and approximately 4,500 networks globally (at least) , ensuring consistent app performance is a challenge.

The global carrier landscape is highly fragmented, with thousands of operators worldwide. Then there are the infinite network strengths that every app must adjust to the varying network strengths of internet connections across the world.

A single user of any app transitions through multiple strengths of network connectivity — Wi-Fi, LTE, 3G, 4G — throughout a single day, as they move from place to place, going about their daily routine.

Naturally, it is essential for development teams to test mobile apps on different networks and carriers comprehensively. In this article, we’ll discuss the need for doing so and a few best practices for telecom testing that impact app performance, reliability, and usability.

Why Is It Necessary to Test Mobile Apps on Different Networks & Carriers?

Mobile apps must perform in highly dynamic environments — transitioning between Wi-Fi to mobile data, or from high-speed 5G to slower 3G. It must be tested for flaws under each circumstance.

• Mobile network performance is not uniform. They vary widely based on the device’s location or other backend factors influencing the carrier. For instance, the average download speed in South Korea is far higher than that of India or the Philippines. Even within a country, the network strength can vary within and between states.
• Certain mobile carriers use network optimization tactics like proxy layers or compression algorithms, which tend to interfere with app performance. With testing under these conditions, bugs (like delays in push notifications) go undetected.
• Apps must be tested to check how they respond in elevators, basements, and subways — common low/no network areas.
• 53% of visits are likely to be abandoned if pages take longer than 3 seconds to load. Apps must be tested to ensure that they do not disappoint users in terms of performance.
• Apps must be tested to work across different network speeds in multiple countries, states, and regions — whether it’s 5G in the U.S. or EDGE in rural Africa.
• Most carrier networks vary in coverage quality, signal reliability and roaming behavior. Carriers providing perfect service in one city might be complete duds in another. 

How does network variability impact mobile app performance?

Network issues like latency, packet loss, and bandwidth throttling can affect app operations in multiple ways:

• Slows down loading time, leading to user dissatisfaction and app abandonment.
• Insufficient data synchronization which leads to users receiving out-of-sync information via apps.
• Degraded media streaming with high buffer times and lower video quality.

Bear in mind that breakdowns in real-world network conditions will directly lead to user attrition. Modern users don’t have much patience for bad service, and they will abandon an app as quickly as they installed it.

Best Practices for Testing Mobile Apps Across Networks and Carriers

When testing mobile apps, integrate the following best practices into the test pipeline:

Simulate Diverse Network Conditions

Tools like Testgrid, Network Link Conditioner, Charles Proxy, and Android Emulator can help mimic different network strengths like 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, and even LTE. It can replicate bandwidth constraints, latency spikes, and jitter to test the app’s response in unfavorable environments.

As mentioned before, any app would have to work in diverse networks in the real world. People and their mobile devices move from one location to another during their normal days. Simulating diverse network conditions helps ensure that the app performs optimally at all levels.

Test on Real Devices and Networks

Emulators and simulators are not enough to produce 100% accurate test results. The nuances of real devices are not comprehensively reflected in emulators/simulators. Additionally, new devices and mobile OSes are being released every few months, and emulators for each are not released at the same speed.

It is much easier and far more effective to just test on the mobile devices directly. Teams can simply use a real device cloud like TestGrid. The tool is cloud and browser-based, with no downloads required. Simply log in, select your devices, upload your app, and start testing.

Combine Automated and Manual Testing

Deploy a balanced combination of manual and automated testing. Manual testing is best suited for detecting UX flaws, as it needs human eyes to determine the quality of the user experience. It is also ideal for handling edge cases, as human minds are better at unraveling unexpected, complex scenarios.

Automated testing, on the other hand, can handle all repetitive tasks, even ones that need multiple input values. The idea is to let machines and AI do all the grunt work, while human testers focus on higher-level cognitive tasks.

Design Network Variability Test Cases

Design and test scenarios in which users are switching between networks, such as from Wi-Fi to 4G. Don’t forget to include situations with sudden loss of connectivity.

Check how the app resumes active sessions, manages data queues, and re-establishes data sync — everything it has to do in the real world of variable network strengths.

Monitor Key Performance Indicators

Determine and set up KPIs related to network-based performance, such as Time to First Byte (TTFB), screen load time, data consumption, and error frequency. Measuring app perform in the context of these metrics will help determine how well it works in real world circumstances.

Prioritize Critical User Journeys

When testing carrier and network diversity, it’s important to focus on essential user flows such as login, checkout, media loading, and in-app payments. These flows are sensitive to network disruptions and significantly impact user retention. No matter what, users should be able to get the essential services at any level of active network activity.

Use Crowdtesting Platforms

Utilize crowdtesting platforms to bring about a diversity of testing conditions, such as different geographies, devices, and carriers. The QA process becomes far more comprehensive than if you just kept it confined to an internal team.

Crowdtesting almost always refines and expands the QA process, helping find bugs that might easily be missed in lab conditions.

Optimize for Low-End Devices and Networks

When designing the app, remember that essential features must work on devices on low-end devices and networks, as well as the latest iPhone. So, all design elements, memory consumption, and functionalities must be optimized for less favorable hardware and software conditions.

Trim code bloat, compress all images, and minimize animations draining too many resources. Consider the need for users with budget phones and limited mobile plans.

Strengthen the app’s Offline Capability

The app should be able to perform important actions like local caching and deferred syncing. When users can access more features offline, they receive a better digital experience and tend to keep using the app. This is especially true of user experience in low-connectivity areas.

Keep Updating Tests as the Market Changes

Networks and devices evolve, and do so often in modern business landscapes. Tests have to keep pace with 5G rollouts, carrier mergers, OS updates, shifts in network throttling policies, and roaming behavior. Teams cannot manage with test suites that only account for last year’s carrier or network configurations — that’s already outdated.

Don’t forget that user expectations around app speed and usability also advance with technological progress. Tests must evolve to meet these quality expectations around instant load times, minimal data usage, and seamless performance across urban and rural networks.

Every new phone model and OS release further fragments the market, which further requires tests to be specific to newer, more popular devices, as well as existing market favorites. Since carriers interact differently with different hardware, and redundant tests tend to miss out on significant edge cases.

Apps that glitch under specific carrier conditions (for eg., slow failover from Wi-Fi to 5G) will lose users, get 1-star reviews, and quickly lose market credibility. There is no option but to stay proactive with testing, regularly revisiting it as the market shifts, and ensuring that users are not blindsided by quality issues.

Conclusion

Telco testing solutions have to deal with an increasingly fragmented carrier market, varying bandwidths, and constantly shifting user expectations. Testers have to navigate real-world scenarios with a range of methodologies for more reliable, customer-centric methodologies and periodic test updation and re-execution for global markets.

A solution like Testgrid will simulate real-world conditions, prioritize critical user journeys, and continuously update tests and test practices. A few high-level features:

• Tests device performance under weak network reception to ensure usability in remote or low-signal areas.
• Simulates high-traffic scenarios to assess app stability and responsiveness under heavy loads.
• Evaluates connectivity issues caused by external signals, ensuring reliable service in challenging environments.
• Validates device performance in global roaming scenarios — devices dispersed across the US, India, and other global regions.
• Offers API-driven automation for simpler telco testing workflows, reduced manual effort, and boosts to efficiency.
• Identifies network-specific disruptions that could impact connectivity and app performance.
• Monitors app responsiveness and load times to optimize user experience across network conditions.

To determine if Testgrid can actually help developers push high-quality apps that perform seamlessly across different conditions, how about taking the free trial? Let the tool speak for itself.