Cross Platform Apps Comparison – Titanium Vs Sencha Touch Vs PhoneGap

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There are a variety of businesses competing for the sole purpose of being able to attract customers and expand their reach through technology. For this purpose, different developers must adapt to precise mobile app development frameworks, platforms, applications, tools, and more to accommodate ever-growing demand of technology across the market.
Among the numerous cross platform apps and tools available in the marketplace, Titanium, Sencha Touch, and PhoneGap are all that are highy used. They can easily create mobile apps compatible with virtually every gadget and OS. In this blog, we will go over the comparison between these three cross platform mobile apps tools.
In a cutthroat business scenario, companies want to reach as many people as possible, but then as people use different mobile devices working on different OS, it is difficult for them to address a huge smartphone users’ community with native apps for a specific platform.
Cross platform Mobile Apps Compelling Necessity
To effectively cope with the diversity of mobile platforms, companies need to opt for cross platform tools and apps. In other words, companies require the tailored apps that can run seamlessly on every platform irrespective of different devices.
A few years back, cross-platform apps’ development was costly, and SMEs could not afford it. Nowadays, cross platform apps have got cheaper with the technological advancement called cross-platform mobile app tools. Out of several available cross-platform app tools, Titanium, Sencha Touch and PhoneGap are outstanding tools that can readily develop mobile apps that work fine on different platforms. Let us compare them in this blog:
Titanium Appcelerator:
It uses many languages including JavaScript, HTML5, CSS3, PHP and Python to develop applications that can run on both Android and iOS. High performance and the minimal difference with native apps are two strong advantages of this platform. It offers a wide range of native features and a huge developers’ support as it is an open-source framework. Its single JavaScript codebase enables developers to create mobile apps for iOS, Android, Windows, BlackBerry, and Tizen.

Sencha Touch:
It is specifically built for the mobile web, and its developers also offer a framework for developing regular web pages. It is based on HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript that enables developers to develop HTML5 based cross-platform mobile apps in a rapid manner. Mobile apps made by Sencha Touch offer experience like native apps inside a browser. Its development team has an open support forum to answer the users’ questions.
PhoneGap:
It is considered as the most successful mobile framework for mobile app development. It is the most popular open-source framework to date. Mobile app for almost all the platforms under the sun is possible through this HTML, JavaScript, and CSS3 based platform. It is a very swift platform that transforms any web app to native apps for Android or iOS within an hour. Also, it offers a huge technical assistance to the developers.
App developers can use any of these platforms for making tailored cross-platform applications on the basis of clients’ requirements and individual skills.
Here is a quick guide to understanding fundamental aspects of all three platforms:
Comparison of cross-platform tools
Aspects | Titanium Appcelerator | Sencha Touch | PhoneGap | |
Platforms | iOS, Android, Windows, BlackBerry, Tizen | Android, iOS, Windows, BlackBerry, and Tizen | iOS, Android, Windows, BlackBerry, Symbian, Palm, Bada, and webOS | |
Programming languages | Jscript, HTML5, CSS3, PHP, Ruby, and Python | Jscript, HTML5, and CSS3 | Jscript, HTML5, and CSS3 | |
Open-source | No | No | Yes | |
Popularity | Moderate to high | High | Highest | |
Functional differences with native apps | Minimal | Medium | Medium | |
Specifically built for | Mobile apps | Mobile web | Mobile apps | |
Key Takeaways
Companies require specialized cross platform tools and apps operating flawlessly and swiftly across all platforms, regardless of different devices, in a competitive business environment. Titanium, Sencha Touch, and PhoneGap stand out among the many cross-platform app development tools that are readily available for creating mobile apps that function well on several different platforms.
Sencha Touch mobile applications provide a native app-like experience within a browser. The most effective and precise mobile framework for creating mobile apps is PhoneGap.
On the other hand, Titanium is a rapid platform that can convert any web application into a native app for Android or iOS.
FAQs on Appcelerator, Titanium, Sencha Touch, and PhoneGap
Why should you opt for cross-platform mobile app development?
The cross-platform development approach allows app developers to create applications for various platforms using the same codebase, saving time, money, and unnecessary effort. By investing less, you can create best cross platform apps on different platforms like Titanium, Sencha Touch, and PhoneGap.
What are PhoneGap limitations?
The PhoneGap APIs are developed with JavaScript, which isn't multi-threaded and doesn't allow background processing. There are several native APIs that aren't supported yet by the PhoneGap APIs. Additionally, many cross platform mobile applications built on PhoneGap are multifaceted and complicated.
Is Sencha Touch open source?
There isn't an open-source license available for Sencha Touch. The sencha software license agreement governs commercial licenses to use Sencha for crafting cross platform applications.
What is the Appcelerator used for?
Appcelerator aids developers build JavaScript competencies, enabling them to develop applications that can run on various platforms. It has various built-in tools for creating applications with a minimalist look, soft touch, and efficiency. It works with almost every system.
How is Appcelerator different from other mobile application development?
Appcelerator can create native applications with simple HTML code within an application, which gives it an advantage over other mobile app developers. The platform utilized by Appcelerator gives its users complete control over cloud analytics.