In this article, we will see if Python can be used to develop Android applications. We will see the advantages and disadvantages of doing this.
Is it “Possible” to make an Android app with Python?
Yes, it is possible to make an Android application using pure Python language. Even though Android doesn’t support native Python development, this can be done via several tools that convert your Python apps into Android packages which now can run on Android devices.
There are some frameworks that make this possible. Refer to our other article mentioned below for information about such frameworks
2 Best Python Frameworks for building Android apps
Is it a “good idea” to develop apps with Python?
While it is possible to develop Android apps in Python, is it a good idea to do that?
Developing apps with Python comes with advantages over developing apps with traditional Java!
Speaking of advantages, here are some benefits of using Python to develop your applications.
List of advantages of using Python to develop Android apps
Learning curve
As we all know, Python is miles ahead when it comes to ease of learning. It has simple, clean, and readable syntax. Not to mention, this readability also allows for easy collaboration among team members further speeding up the learning process.
In simple words, if you want to learn how to develop apps with Python, it is far simpler than any other language.
Availability of libraries and frameworks
Python, owing to its open-source nature, has good libraries and frameworks that will greatly help any developer looking to develop applications with Python.
For example, the most prominent examples that stand out are the Kivy framework and the BeeWare toolkit.
Kivy will help you to develop cross-platform applications whilst Beeware is a suite of Python tools that work together to enable you to develop platform-native applications in Python.
Again I ask you to read our other article below for more information.
2 Best Python Frameworks for building Android apps
Cross-platform capabilities
Python is a cross-platform language. This means that it can run on different operating systems such as Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. So when you develop code, it can easily be reused across all these platforms.
As you can guess, this saves a ton of time and effort. This level of flexibility that you find in Python may not be available in other languages.
Versatility
Since Python itself is an extremely versatile language, we can exploit it to make apps that range across various types. From creating applications like games to applications that are data-driven and so on. This is helpful as it becomes more approachable to a broad spectrum of project developers.
Test-Driven Development Compatibility
Python is an easy language for creating prototypes for your application. It supports prototype development and allows you to directly develop applications from prototypes by refactoring them.
Reusing code
We already saw how Python can be used to save time and effort by reusing code across multiple platforms. Another way Python helps in reusing code is by allowing developers that may already have existing Python code that can be used for Android app development. So, as a developer, you can use Python code from other projects to build Android apps, saving time and effort yet again!
Limitations of using Python for Android app development
That being said, there are limitations to choosing Python as your language for building an Android application.
Here are some other disadvantages:
- The Python frameworks we use will not support every feature of the Android operating system.
- There may be a problem with the application’s speed as Python is not known for its performance.
- High-level graphics may not be supported in Python.
- Since Python uses an interpreter and not a compiler, if the app has an error, it will only be revealed during the execution phase. To counter this, various tests must be created beforehand.
An important point to keep in mind is that it may not be as effective or reliable as Android app development via Java(native for Android apps). This is because Java is the official language of Android, as established by Google. Hence, other languages like Python will not be as capable as Java.
What type of apps can be developed with Python?
Game Prototypes
Python has several features that assist us in game development. For instance, it can create quick game prototypes and test them in real-time using Pygame. It can also be used to create design tools amongst many other things
Cloud Apps
If most of the processing in your app is done in the cloud, then it’s a good idea to use Python as you do not need to depend upon the phone’s processors to do all the heavy lifting
Machine Learning and AI apps
Machine learning and Python go hand in hand. Hence if you’re looking to make a machine learning app, Python is the way to go. Aside from the exceedingly easy code syntax that Python provides to face the complex tasks in machine learning, it also provides several libraries for machine learning such as sci-kit-learn. These libraries are also free and can used at your convenience.
Command-line apps
Due to Python’s REPL feature (Real-Eval-Print-Loop), it becomes ideal for command-line apps. Again, there are many free Python libraries to create command-line apps.
Web Applications
Python is a common choice for back-end language. Python’s web frameworks such as Django and Flask help developers to create good web applications.
Blockchain Applications
With the recent emergence of blockchain trends, developing blockchain applications seems like the right choice for many developers. Python has been the first choice for many such developers because it makes the very difficult and complex process easy.
Developers use HTTP requests to interact with the blockchain on the internet and use Python frameworks such as Flask to endpoints for various features of the blockchain.
And with that example, let’s end the article!
I hope you got the answer you were looking for!
All the very best on your Python application development journey!
Here are some other helpful articles.
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2 Best Python Frameworks for building Android apps
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Thanks to Namazi Jamal for his contributions in writing this article!
