So, you have learned the basics of programming and now want to try your hands on developing an android app. Well, developing an app can be a great start to your career. Involving in an android app development project not only puts to test your programming skills, but also teaches you a lot about how programming concepts are applied to accomplish real world tasks.
At first, the journey may seem overwhelming, but the trick is to keep going and keep learning. The best way to learn something is by doing it. Therefore, the best way to learn app development is to actually make one. At the beginning, don’t expect yourself to be able to make super complex apps. Start with some simple apps to learn how different tools work together to take the shape of an app.
You will not learn app development in just one day, but small progress each day will certainly make you skilled enough to develop complex apps.
Here, I am suggesting some android app development projects which you may try. The list is in the order of increasing complexity of development. So, lets get started.
1. App to perform mathematical operations
The simplest app you can make. this app will let the user to input two integer values. Then, on the click of the respective buttons, the result of addition, subtraction, division and multiplication will be shown to the user.
To implement this app, you will require two editText, four buttons for the four operations and a label to display the result to the user. You need to grab the inserted values, add it and assign the result to the result textView. The logic of the app is the same as you would do while writing a console program.
2. Calculator App
Now, what is the difference between this app and the previous one. Well, this app is a full fledged calculator app while the previous one was just performing four operations. Here, there will be buttons for every input, and the result will be shown in a textView.
You can modify the app to make it visually appealing and easy to use. For example, use one color for the numbers, one for operations, another one for result button, etc.
One thing to keep in mind is that, you need to store each input in a variable and perform the calculations accordingly, because in this app, there are numerous inputs and different operations between them. No need to worry if you find it difficult to implement, you can always search on the internet regarding the implementation of this program.
This app will teach you two things. First, it will teach you logic building, and second, it will teach you how to design interfaces that makes your app appealing.
3. Portfolio App
Till now, you have been making apps which requires only single screen. Now, it’s time to build a multi-screen app. As an example, we are taking the portfolio app, you can always come up with new ideas. The main motive should be to learn making multi-screen apps.
In android’s technical terms, a multi-screen app is basically an app with multiple activities. To know more about android activity, click here.
While developing this app, you will get familiar with the concept of intent, and how to use intents to share information with different screens. You will also use intents to direct the user from one activity to another.
4. Note Taking App
After you are done with the above, you can try the note taking app, this app will introduce you to databases, and in case of android, SQLite database. You will learn to create local databases, write queries, execute them, etc. You have to carefully design the database in accordance with the app’s requirements.
Users, when opens the app, should see the list of their notes, along with a button to add a new note. For the add button, you can use a floating action button. The floating action button, when clicked will take the user to a new activity which will have an interface to let the user enter the note.
To display the list of notes, you can use cardView or you can use listView, use the one you prefer. You can further add features to edit or delete notes. To enable these functions, you will need to create functions which when called, executes the appropriate database query.
5. Chat App
After you are done with the above projects, you can challenge yourself with a little complex project. To make a chat app, you will need the knowledge of Firebase, and how to use firebase services like authentication, database, etc. Click here to know more about Firebase.
You will create interfaces and design screens for logging in, displaying conversation lists, chat screen, etc. The backend will be handled by Google Firebase, but you will need to learn how to implement different functions which firebase provides for authentication, database access, etc.
This app will also introduce you to the concept of permissions. You must have seen permission requests when you first launch an android app. Since your app is going to connect to the internet, access device data, etc. you must request permission from the user. You will handle permissions using the manifest file.
So, these are some android project ideas that you can try to improve your skills. You can always modify these and try new ideas. This will help you build better and complex apps in the future. Hope you liked the post. Good luck for your app development journey!
Also read: Getting Started With Android Development
