You should do at least one field test of your application because
When you perform the field test on your application while driving a car or while walking in a place where there is less or no signal, you get to know that whether your application has any crashing issues or not. Users get irritated when they see a loading symbol on their screen for more than a minute. Thus, it is important that you test your application to ensure it takes minimum time for loading completely.
Strategy for the Field Test
In field-testing, the important step is to make sure that the impact of network or data is not affecting major functionalities of your app. Therefore, you should have a thorough discussion with your development team, about the functionalities of your application.
Here are a few points that you can consider while making a field test strategy:
- Discuss the field test results with your development team and ask them what they think about the results. Are they promising enough? What can be done to achieve better results?
- You may not need this for in-house testing but when you perform field test make sure that you create some test cases keeping the purpose of your app and your users in mind.
- Perform field tests only when your application has passed the bug tests and when there is no issue in the application’s function.
- Maintain your records wisely, because down the road you will need them. Make a chart and enter all your test case results in that. Do this after every field test you do on your application. This will allow you to see where you can improve.
- You need to test your application on two devices. One that is a budget smartphone and another is a flagship device. Make sure both the devices have the same OS. This will help you analyze the bugs found on any of the two devices.
Why do field tests?
A field test should be done only after the rigorous testing of the app. Make sure that the functionalities for releasing the stable version of the app are implemented and bugs are fixed.
Important factors for Field Test are:
- When you release your application for the first time: It is the best time to do an in-depth field test of your application. Since the app is not yet uploaded on the Play Store, it helps you and your team to analyze the performance, by using the app like your customers would.
- If your application is designed for a specific platform: The field test is necessary because these apps use features of the phone and the OS to the fullest.
- When Android OS is launched (Oreo, Pie)/ When IOS is updated: You need to check that your application does not lag in any area especially in its core functionality. Ensure that the app is stable, compatible and performs well in the new environment.
- When you add a new feature/ update your application: It is important to do a field test to make sure that the performance of your app is not affected, when new features are added or existing features are updated,
- Make field test as a part of your application routine tests: Field tests on a mobile application should be performed regularly, making it a part of your regular testing procedure and never ignoring it.
Examples of Tests that can be verified in a Field Test
Let us take the Zomato app that is used to search for restaurants and order food.
Given below are a few examples of test cases that can be taken up for a field test:
- Start by logging in as a customer to order food.
- Validate that when you change the location, the restaurant list is updated and is shown with pictures and other details. Test the flow of the app and use all the features required to place an order.
- Check the above step in the different scenarios like walking and driving around.
- Test the app if it works fine when you change the network mode from 4G to 3G. Try doing the above tests on slower network speed.
- If possible, try to use a discount coupon while placing an order to check if it works or not successfully while ordering food.
- Access the review feature to write feedback for the restaurant when you are moving around. Check if the feedback is submitted successfully and shows up in the reviews list of the restaurant.
A mobile app can only be called stable and fast when it successfully passes a field test. Field test should be done for every release to the possible extent. For mobile applications, the field test is a part of the testing cycle and should never be avoided or taken lightly.
