Phonegap Development Interview Questions and Answers for Mobile Developers

Phonegap Development Interview Questions and Answers for Mobile Developers

We have compiled a short list of phonegap development interview questions and answers for mobile developers. A phonegap mobile application developer must know the answers of these following questions of phonegap before going to phonegap interview.

1. What is PhoneGap and why should mobile developers consider using phonegap?

PhoneGap is a mobile application framework that allows developers to use HTML, JavaScript and CSS to create mobile apps that are present as first-class applications on the phone. That means the mobile apps have their own icons and operate similarly to native applications without a browser frame around them.

They are distributed via the application stores, such as the Android Market and the Apple App Store, and they have access to a set of native functions to further make them work like native apps.

Mobile developers use PhoneGap because it allows them to have a common codebase for all their application code. It doesn’t force developers to reinvent the wheel every time they move from platform to platform.

2. Are there downsides to using PhoneGap? or Limitations of Phonegap

You are subject to the limitations of the browser and the JavaScript engine that comes with your device. On Android 2.3, this isn’t too bad. Earlier versions of Android don’t support certain features, and many of them use older JavaScript interpreters, which can impact an application. Also, there are certain things that are better implemented in native code, like cryptography or 3-D graphics. Most apps don’t use features like this — they simply display information, which the web does well.

3. What’s the best way for PhoneGap developers to handle device-specific needs?

It depends on the feature set. Most mobile applications don’t need many device-specific features beyond the user interface, but there are numerous plugins that can help with this approach. The best approach is to decide what features you need and to use only those features. There are many applications that have permissions turned on that they don’t need. For example, a simple ebook doesn’t need access to your phone state, GPS or contacts.

4. What is a hybrid app?

A hybrid application is one that has features of both a web application and a native application. Certain features, such as Image Capture, NFC or Android OpenAccessory, may be implemented natively since there is currently no way to do this in JavaScript. But the application logic and the UI are implemented using web technologies to allow for a consistent and unique user experience across devices.

5. How phonegap simplifies mobile development?

Mobile development is a mess. Building applications for each device--iPhone, Android, Windows Mobile and more--requires different frameworks and languages. One day, the big players in mobile may decide to work together and unify third-party app development processes. Until then, PhoneGap will use standards-based web technologies to bridge web applications and mobile devices. Plus, because PhoneGap apps are standards compliant, they're future-proofed to work with browsers as they evolve.

PhoneGap is an open source implementation of open standards. That means developers and companies can use PhoneGap for mobile applications that are free, commercial, open source, or any combination of these.