iOS App Testing iOS App Testing

Exploratory Testing

Exploratory Testing of your iOS App to find any unexpected issues. This can be during general use of your App and can also be targeted at specific functionality of your App. Across iOS and iPadOS.* More info on Exploratory Testing

Functional Testing

Testing the different functionality included in your App. This could be aimed at specific areas or a general test including all main functionality. This testing would also highlight any app usability issues, UI/UX issues when accessing functionality and features.* More info on Functional Testing

End-to-End Testing

End-to-End Testing of your iOS App, in sectors such as Online Stores, Retail, Holiday Booking and Ticketing. This can uncover defects in areas including Signup, Shopping, Cart, Checkout, Payments and Confirmation.* More info on End-to-End Testing

Device Range Testing

Testing your App across the full range of iOS devices – iPhones and iPads. Testing done on real devices, not iOS Simulators or virtual devices. Includes iOS and iPadOS devices.

Mobile Commerce

Testing Mobile Commerce and Payments, including payment platforms such as PayPal, Worldpay and others such as Apple Pay.* More info on Apple Pay

Performance Testing

Performance of your iOS app is a critical element in the success of your app. I can test the performance of your iOS app using tools such as Charles proxy to simulate low bandwidth – known as bandwidth throttling. Also this tool can be used to test for unreliable connections and how your app handles them.

Advanced Technologies

The iOS platform can interact with and utilise many Advanced Technologies, such as Voice Control (including Alexa Skills), Internet of Things (IoT) and Augmented Reality (AR) These can all be tested in terms of functionality, how they combine with the iOS app/platform and for any likely errors or unusual situations.

Authentication Testing

As a growing number of users are now using 2FA to securely access their accounts, many apps are now implementing the use of Authentication Apps to provide secure access. Where relevant, testing can include Authentication Testing via apps such as Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator and others, as required. Maybe you’re adding Authentication functionality into your app or are updating it – it will need significant testing, otherwise users may be locked out! * More info on Testing Authentication Apps

Expert Tools

Using Expert Tools, like Charles Proxy, to really test your iOS app that extra nth degree that many testers won’t go to. Using Charles Proxy for bandwidth throttling, rewriting HTTP response codes, adding breakpoints, viewing encrypted SSL comms etc.

A flexible testing approach

  • Working alongside your existing QA process, creating new QA processes where none are currently implemented and suggesting improvements to existing QA processes
  • Working within Agile projects and waterfall projects
  • Using various test methods, such as Rapid Software Testing, which allows you to start testing almost immediately using Exploratory Testing, designing and executing tests all at the same time
  • Delivering and reporting results in the most useful way
* More info on my Flexible Testing approach.

Who I work with...

  • Startups, needing to add QA to their processes (e.g. single product app company)
  • Digital agencies who are project-based clients, needing mobile app testing as part of each project
  • Software Houses, App Developers, established clients, who need to improve their QA
  • Testing agencies, who require extra testing resources
* More info on Who I Work With….

Benefits of iOS App Testing

  • Ensure quality control of your App
  • Release your Apps with confidence
  • Spend less time and money dealing with bugs
  • Confirm that new features work as intended
  • Avoid App Store rejection * More info
  • Reduce risks that buggy Apps may bring
  • Make sure your iOS app works on new iOS versions
  • Avoid 1 star App reviews!

Contact Me Your next step – Contact Me

Contact Me

Contact me for freelance iOS App Testing & QA Services

I'm a freelance iOS App Tester based in the London area.
Contact Me

My other testing services: Android App Testing / Website Testing

How an iOS App Testing Project works How an iOS App Testing Project works

In some cases, a client will know exactly what they want from an iOS app testing project and this will help to define the project from the start. On the other hand, a client may come to me and say ‘test my iOS app’, in which case, further information is required to find out the required scope of the testing project.

In order to define the project, we can discuss requirements via email, phone call, Skype call, Slack chat, MS Teams etc.

The aim here is to agree what the testing should focus on and on what devices the testing should be carried out on.

Other factors to consider are scheduling, app delivery method, where issues are to be raised and how test results are reported.

At this stage, the iOS App is tested, according to the Project definitions and the device list agreed on. This will include all the testing types agreed on, plus the appropriate amount of Exploratory Testing to unearth bugs which may otherwise be left lurking in the iOS App.

Issues are raised as they are found, in the method agreed: this could be in your own issue tracker – such as JIRA, DoneDone, RedMine etc – or within an Excel document, or perhaps a Google doc, or, where applicable, within my own hosted JIRA issue tracker.

Test results can be reported in many ways and the method used will often depend on the length of the test project. For example, a short half-day test could be reported on in an email that summarises all the results, whereas a longer test could be reported on in a full Test Summary Report.

A Test Summary Report includes sections such as Overview, Main Findings, Gap Analysis, Deliverables, Testing Types Performed, Test Devices, Bugs Statistics and Summary of Main Bugs.

At this stage, we can discuss if any further testing is required.

This may include further focussed testing, retesting of fixed issues, regression testing after changes or any other type of testing.

Other testing types I perform: Android App Testing, Website Testing

Testing Stages

During the Development Stage, I can work with the Developers, Designers and Project Managers to effectively design and execute tests at the most cost-effective time.

    * Working with Developers, Designers, Project Managers.
    * Testing can be focussed on the most important functionality or can be generalised, to cover all areas of the app.
    * Testing can be added in phases, as new functionality is developed and available for testing e.g. on a sprint/iteration/release basis.
    * Most cost-effective time for testing.
During the Beta Stage, bugs can be found which otherwise would have been released to the public.

    * Find Bugs before App is released to the public.
    * All functionality can be tested at this stage, and emphasis can be given to certain functionality depending on priorities.
    * Still a cost-effective time for testing.
At the Release Stage, testing can be done at and around the go-live stage, to try and find any last-minute issues, and also when new features are added to the app, or when the app is rewritten to take into account new technology, new features etc.

    * Testing at and around the go-live stage, to find any last-minute issues
    * Testing new Features and Functionality
    * Finding Bugs in rewritten Apps

Some of the Testing Projects I’ve worked on

iOS App Testing Project in Detail

#DaysToLive

  • On this project, I performed iOS App Testing for the Days To Live iOS App working with the Developers, Designers and Project Manager.
  • Testing included Smoke Testing, Functional Testing, Exploratory Testing and testing the Social Media integration of the App, which directly posts to Facebook and Twitter.
  • This involved creating and constantly updating Test Plans and Test Results documentation.
  • TestFlight was used for App distribution.
  • I also performed Website Testing on the graphically stunning HTML5 Days To Live questionnaire website
  • This project involved working online and also onsite at Pulse Films offices in Shoreditch.

iOS App Sectors I have tested in

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  • Retail & Shopping
  • Shopping Rewards
  • Online Store
  • Banking & Financial
  • Events
  • Travel
  • Music Industry
  • Photo postcards
  • Ticketing
  • Fashion
  • Fitness, Health & Lifestyle
  • Email
  • Productivity
  • Navigation & GPS
  • Location Based Services (LBS)
  • Mind Mapping
  • Sports – Golf & GPS
  • Music Streaming, Movie Streaming, TV, Videos
  • Cinemas, cinema ticket booking
  • Casino & Slots, Roulette
  • Betting & Betting Exchange
  • Games
  • Gaming Platforms
  • Medical (Locums)

iOS App Testing related activities & technologies

TestFlight & Other App Distribution Platforms

TestFlight enables the easy delivery of iOS Apps for testing. The idea behind it is that iOS App developers setup a project that testers can be added to. The testers can then access the latest builds of the App as and when required and then download the App to their device for testing. TestFlight also automatically controls the testers access to new versions of the App under test. Since Apple purchased TestFlight, it has been for iOS 8+ apps only. I’ve also brief experience of using Hockey for App Distribution.

Ad hoc distribution

Ad hoc distribution is the manual process of distributing iOS Apps for testing. This usually involves distributing the App via email or something like Dropbox, then installing the App to your test device via iTunes. In order to do this, the UDID of the test device(s) must be known in advance by the developer

Crash Reports and App Logs

A crashing iOS App is seen as the most serious type of iOS bug – usually treated as criticial/show-stopper – especially if it happens on multiple devices.
The iOS App may crash for many different reasons, so the developer will want to know as much information about the crash as possible, so they can attempt to fix the issue. This information will usually include both a description of what the tester was doing in the iOS App at the time of the crash, the exact time of the crash and also any accompanying crash reports/logs from the device.
There are several possibilities for obtaining Crash Reports from your test device: the first is syncing it with iTunes and then using the Console app on your Mac OSX desktop/laptop, the second is to use an App onboard the iOS device and there are several of these, such as Log Police – and the third, if using iOS 7+, is to go to the Diagnostics and Usage data within Settings – where a list of crashes and low memory reports can be viewed and managed. Also, the latest version of TestFlight (now owned by Apple) can be used for obtaining crash reports.

Test Documentation

Creating Test Plans and Test Results documentation is a vital part of the testing process and enables the tester to plan what to test and to keep track of what’s been tested.

Bug Reports

Creating detailed Bug Reports is an essential part of the testing process, allowing the developers to reproduce the bug and then attempt to fix it.

Bug Screenshots & Videos

Sometimes a bug is best shown via a screenshot or a video – or both – especially when a text description doesn’t seem sufficient or would be too complicated to be useful. When testing an iOS App, screenshots are easy to get, as the iOS devices have a built-in method for this. Obtaining videos is a little more tricky as there are (currently) no apps for doing this (unless using a jail-broken device, which isn’t recommended for testing). A way round this would be to use another device to record the video. Update: The Reflector App can now be used to grab videos of your iOS device’s screen.

Maintaining and Tracking Issues

Maintaining and tracking issues in an Issue Tracking System is a vital way of managing the Test Process, so that progress in fixing issues can be monitored and updated.

Issue Tracking Systems

Different projects require the use of different Issue Tracking Systems. So far, I’ve used the specialist Jira system, the Redmine issue-tracking system, the DoneDone issue-tracking system, the issue-tracking features in the Codebase system, also Pivotal Tracker, plus have also used Excel spreadsheets and Google Docs.

iOS App technologies - iBeacons, Apple Pay, NFC, IoT, AR (Augmented Reality)

As the iOS platform has matured, new technologies have been added to the iOS ecosystem and other concepts have evolved, such as IoT. These technologies are sometimes used within iOS apps and therefore require specialist testing.
iBeacons – this is a comms technology which enables radio connections/messaging/alerts between a location – such as a shop or a display stand – and a user’s smartphone or tablet, to transmit info such as special offers and product information. The tech has been in iOS since iOS 7 and extends Location Services, using Bluetooth 4.0/low energy.
Apple Pay – Apple bills Apple Pay as “Your wallet. Without the wallet.” and it allows users to make payments both in stores and in apps. It uses a combination of Near Field Communication (NFC), Touch ID and the Passbook/Wallet app to enable the payments to be made securely.
NFC – NFC is a method of wireless data transfer between two enabled devices that are in close proximity (about 10 cms) An NFC-enabled device will detect another NFC-enabled device and data can then be transferred between the two devices. In the real world, NFC is technology used in ‘Tap and go’ or ‘Proximity card’ services – including Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay, plus many other services.
IoT – The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the interconnection of physical objects or “things” which contain network connectivity, sensors, electronics and software and are enabled to exchange data with smart devices, such as smartphones and tablets – this then enables them to be app-controlled.
AR – Augmented Reality (AR) is where a view of reality is augmented with visuals generated by the app, with the Pokemon Go app bringing this technology into the public awareness in 2016.

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