This blog post is intended to offer guidance on the latest software testing trends available in the market in 2022 and which Testing Tool is more suitable for web and mobile applications in terms of functionality testing.

The Future of Software Testing: What Will Be the Key Drivers?

Introduction: What are Software Testing Trends and Why Should We Care?

In software testing, many trends will show up in the future. One trend is the use of AI for improving product quality.

Software testing is not just about finding bugs and errors in code anymore. With the help of AI, testers can now use their time to test the user experience and usability of an application or website. Software testers can also run automated tests using AI to ensure that every possible case has been tested.

One trend that will happen in 2022 is how software testers will be more liable for product development than before due to the increase in automation and artificial intelligence.

Trend #1: The Growing Dependence on AI and Machine Learning for Quality Assurance

You may have heard that artificial intelligence is being used more and more in the workplace. It’s true, but this trend is especially prominent in quality assurance.

Quality assurance is evaluating a product for flaws and defects before it becomes available to customers. In the past, quality assurance was done by hand. While today, organizations are using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do this job automatically.

Some organizations use machine learning to automatically find bugs in their software before releasing it to customers. However, AI testing can’t catch everything on its own, so companies still need humans to double-check the results from these algorithms before releasing software for public use.

Testing of microservices will introduce new testing patterns and mindsets. This also focuses more on software quality from code rather than manual documents. Companies are adopting agile principles and getting rid of documentation as much as possible for the “how-to” of software development and testing. Most of the documentation in companies are either “What-to,” “Where-to,” and “Who-to.”

Tools and features available in the market based on AI, machine learning and microservices testing.

Applitools: AI with image recognition and Vision API

Mabel: AI with Natural language-based tool

Test Rigor & Testim: AI in UI element identifiers and resolve automated test issues

Trend #2: Securing User Trust Will Become a Top Priority for Software Companies

Software development has become a more complex process in the age of IoT. Security is becoming an increasingly important topic for software companies to consider.

Software companies are now paying closer attention to security risks that come with their product, both from a user perspective and from a company perspective.

Some of the most significant risks include data theft, vulnerability exploits, and third-party tools.

Software companies are now hiring dedicated personnel to ensure the security of their products. This personnel is tasked with finding any vulnerabilities or flaws in software before they are exploited by hackers or detected by regulators.

Trend #3: The Emergence of User Experience Testing in Mobile Apps

User experience is a person’s emotional response when interacting with a product. It can be defined as how people feel about using a product, from pleasure to frustration.

In the past, user experience was created mainly in the design phase before development, or it was developed incrementally during development after the release of new updates. But with mobile apps, this is no longer an adequate approach because of how users engage with mobile apps and their expectations related to the experience.

User experience is a critical part of their strategy for most businesses today and not an afterthought. Therefore, mobile app developers need to focus on creating a great user experience to remain competitive among other companies vying for customers’ attention.

The Rise of the Test Automation Trend in 2022

Automation testing tools are a trend that will increase in the next few years. As a result, these tools will be more and more common in the workplace, and professionals who offer automation testing services will have a higher chance of success.

While test automation has been around for a while, it has become a trend due to the benefits it offers businesses. Automated tests can increase productivity by up to 300% and reduce costs by up to 45%. To make sure this trend is successful, companies need to invest in quality software engineering skills.

How to Choose the Right Artificial Intelligence Tool for Your Needs in 2022?

There is a potential that in 2022, AI will become a regular part of our lives. But unfortunately, the other possibility is that AI will be overly embedded in our lives, regulated, and restricted by the government.

Artificial intelligence will continue to be an integral part of our lives in the near future. We may see an increase in digital assistants, chatbots, and more intelligent devices throughout homes and offices.

Test automation tools and principles in general to decide which should be considered:

• Support of modern web browsers & Platforms.
• Support of modern language bindings.
• Support of modern web application tech stacks.
• Support of extendibility by 3rd parties.
• Support of CI/CD, Docker, or any modern platforms integrations.
• Open-source or Open-source to a certain degree.

Top 2 testing tools available in the market:

Playwright Tool

Features of Playwright:

• Supports Chrome Dev Protocol natively
• Has Native Test Runner
• Has automatic waiting
• Has video capture, PDF generation, mobile emulations, and more modern ways of testing apps
• Playwright CLI can generate code along with cookies, storage, frame, and more
• Playwright gets frequent updates
• Has many modern language bindings that support Ex: C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, TypeScript.
• Playwright has more community support as it is also similar to its predecessor puppeteer.
• Playwright support three types of browser like Chrome, Firefox, and Web kit.

Cypress Tool

Features of Cypress Tool:

• Cypress is 3+ years old now and has community support
• Cypress Dashboard in cypress is amazing with features like Test run Analytics, Flaky Tests, Failure report, and more
• Cypress runs tests in parallel based on spec files and shows report in Dashboard
• Cypress Test Runner UI is very easy to “Run the Test, Time travel option with test screenshot”.
• Cypress supports Chromium and Firefox browsers
• Cypress has automatic waiting option
• Cypress captures Videos, PDF Generation, Mobile emulations, and more modern way of testing apps.
• Cypress CLI can generate code along with cookies, storage, frame, and more
• Cypress gets frequent updates.

Conclusion: How to Stay Ahead of The Game in The Age of Testing Trends

The future of automation is far from bleak. Instead, it is a bright future where automation continues to make our lives easier and more productive.

Learn more about XTIVIA’s Testing Center of Excellence or reach out with any questions you may have!