Ultimate UI Controls for Xamarin: Going Native for Mobile Developers (Infragistics Podcast Ep. 2)

Infragistics Team / Monday, April 10, 2017

This is a quick recap of The Infragistics Podcast — Episode 2, where each week we talk with Infragistics experts and industry influencers about development tools and strategy, UX, and productivity. Be sure to listen and subscribe in the places you’d expect:

In this episode, Jason Beres (Senior VP of Developer Tools) and Elden Nelson (Senior Director, Content Marketing) get together to talk about the just-released Ultimate UI Controls for Xamarin. This is just a quick recap of the topics in this conversation.

Be sure, in addition to listening to this episode of the podcast, to download Infragistics free eBook, Top 10 Xamarin Tips and TrapsYou can also learn much more about Ultimate UI Controls for Xamarin on its product page.

Why is Ultimate UI for Xamarin interesting?

“Visual Studio developers need a way to deliver really great native experiences, must faster than they would with just a platform, and that’s where Infragistics comes in."

Infragistics has increased developer productivity for over 30 years, and the Ultimate UI for Xamarin is the latest iteration to help do just that. There are hundreds of UI controls, grids, layouts and other features that help you spend less time writing code, and more time creating a rich experience.

Does native matter, and how did this come about?

“I do think native does make a difference, and I believe with Visual Studio and Xamarin, a developer is able to deliver great experiences that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do.”

Xamarin helps you build a native iOS and Android app that provides better access to the physical hardware, a better user experience, and a more friendly interface then creating a hybrid app.

In 2014, Xamarin held a conference and invited Infragistics to participate. The conference was centered around Xamarin’s latest release, Xamarin.Forms. This was one of the first iterations of using C# to develop native applications for both iOS and Android. When Microsoft then acquired Xamarin, the interest and need for developer tools for Xamarin was created.

Write fast: What does it mean?

The one area that we really recognize looking at Xamarin and Xamarin.Forms, is that the developer experience in getting an app started and built is a struggle.

Ultimate UI for Xamarin allows you to write fast and run fast, but what does that really mean? The developer tools that are included enable you to quickly design and create a Xamarin mobile app. The AppMap control lets you drag and drop pages and relationships and then automatically creates the necessary XAML. Then, you can add in grids and controls using the Infragistics Toolbox to customize your app to your liking.

Run fast: What does it mean?

“We want to really exceed the performance levels that you expect, and that’s really why over the years we’ve had success.”

With Ultimate UI for Xamarin, you can configure a grid to provide high speed, high volume, real-time data views. The charts, controls, grids, and other layouts available through the Infragistics Toolbox can be used to exceed the performance expectations

PS: If you're enjoying the Infragistics Podcast, be sure to subscribe on iTunes (please rate and review), Google Play, or via RSS feed, or just download it direct. And be sure to spread the word; we’ll have more great episodes coming every week.