Choosing the right Apple Mac for iPhone and iPad App Creation |
Posted: December 9, 2016 |
Developing apps and programs for Mac OS X or iOS platforms is not an easy task by any means. Even though Apple goes out of their way to produce easy-to-understand programs for app development, you will still need to make a choice on what hardware you will be using for developing them. When it comes to Apple computers, every single one of them is of high quality, but the majority of them are way too powerful and expensive for coding and developing apps. Developing apps doesn’t require a beast computer to run properly, especially if you are developing for phones. That is why it is very important to find a balance between hardware and software and not just go for the most expensive machine. In this article, we will show you what makes a good machine for app development on Apple products and how to pick one. How powerful machine do I need?How much power you need depends solely on how big apps you are planning to create. Apple makes a wide range of computers that excel in different areas. Some of them are meant for gaming and others for casual internet browsing, but then there are the ones that are performance beasts like MacBook Pro models. Usually, people think that this last group is the way to go when starting developing apps, but they are wrong. If you are planning to develop apps for iPhones and iPads, then you will be good with just about any model of a Mac computer. Applications for iOS are not huge power drainers and they don’t require the latest models of Macs. Their codes don’t need huge amounts of space and graphics on these apps are not particularly last-gen, so you won’t be needing a high-end graphics card. So any model of Mac computer will be enough. It is better to buy an older and weaker model and save some money, which you can spend on additional equipment to make your coding easier. For example, even though performance is not crucial for app developing, screen size is. A lot of developers buy larger separate screens that they hook up to their Macs because it is easier to keep track of every program that is open. This way they have a much better overview when coding, but still have a good enough computer. The combination of Mac mini and any monitor larger than 24” is ideal for developing apps for iPads or iPhones. There are unofficial stores for Apple computers that offer amazing prices and discounts for a number of different models. You can check out some of the offers from MySky, and opt for the machine that is most suitable for your personal development needs. What software is required?Now that you know what hardware requirements for creating apps are, it is time to learn what software you will be using in this process. Apple`s programming language is Swift and learning it is absolutely essential. All other programs that we are recommending are there to make your job easier and more enjoyable. First of all, we recommend getting Acorn. A powerful program for image editing, but it is much cheaper than Photoshop, making it a great choice for budget developers. Next up is Apple`s Time Capsule. This program will regularly back up all your files, just in case a power outage happens or any other accident. You don’t want to lose hours, even days of coding just because you forgot to back up everything on a cloud server. Lastly, Evernote is a great way to keep notes and reminders during coding and programming. If you get stuck on anything make a reminder and get back to it once you find a solution. And that is it. As you can see choosing an Apple computer for app developing purposes, is not that hard after all. Because all Apple products are high quality, it comes down to how big is your budget and if you want to get additional accessories and software.
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