The real benefit of this approach is being able to use C# - which many programmers consider to be significantly better than Java, Objective-C or Swift. Xamarin estimates that you should be able to use about 75% of your code on each of the platforms. The UI libraries are different and so are the exposed native APIs.
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The only problem is that if you want to make use of the full power of the Xamarin system you have to move from the free starter kit that is included to a monthly paid subscription.įor most projects this isn't going to be a huge problem, but this isn't a system that lets you cross platforms without some effort. Visual Studio 2015 comes with new project templates form Xamarin that target iOS and Android.
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The ability to build native apps for Android and iOS in C# is less obviously attractive. The idea of being able to target the full range of devices all from Visual Studio is very attractive. By supporting Cordova and providing an Android emulator that really works, Microsoft could get some additional apps for its own OS. The reason for Cordova support is that it allows web apps to run on Windows Phone and Windows 8.1 as well as on iOS and Android. You can't work with standard Java-based Android apps in Visual Studio.Īn important question is why is Microsoft supporting this technology?
The type of Android development you can do with VS is limited to Cordova-based HTML/JavaScript apps or using Xamarin's libraries and C#. The first thing to say about the Android emulator is that its addition does not put VS in competition with Eclipse or Android Studio for Android development, as many have commented. In fact, many of the new features are to do with cross platform development. For example, who would have thought that an Android emulator would be part of VS? Well it is in VS 2015. Now it has gone cross platform in a big way.Īs well as making Visual Studio 2013 more or less free to use, Microsoft has released a Preview of the next version of Visual Studio - and it contains some real surprises. Visual Studio used to be specific to Microsoft technologies. If you compare the latest Visual Studio 2015 preview with almost any other version you will be shocked by what you find in it.