Created for developers of all levels, the meldCX Emulator allows the developer to build their apps in a ‘near-native’ environment – without the need for physical hardware.
Developing commercial applications for deployment in Kiosk mode can be challenging. There is a wide range of dependencies, including particular operating system limitations or kiosk-only features. The list expands if you are working with peripheral devices such as payment terminals or printers. Setting up such an environment can be time-consuming and costly, especially as the wider workforce works remotely.
Introducing the meldCX agentM emulator.
What is the meldCX emulator?
The meldCX emulator enables development without the normal constraint of a physical development setup. Through our emulator, developers can run their local development environment and enable their applications to interact with the agentM APIs, including our peripheral drivers.
The meldCX emulator emulates our device application, agentM. It functions within the browser and allows developers to use agentM APIs without a device. It basically mimics how a device would function so that developers can quickly develop and test with it. Then when running your code in production on a real device no changes are needed.
It is great for large teams where providing hardware to each developer is not always possible due to budget or physical location constraints.
What is the main difference between an emulator & a device?
| Criteria | Real device | agentM Emulator |
| Internet | Reliant on the Internet/LAN to receive local builds whilst developing | Reliant on the Internet/LAN to receive local builds whilst developing |
| Simulate real testing scenarios | Simulating many different scenarios with a real device can be hard | Our Emulator has many different scenarios built-in so that you can easily build your app to support them from the start |
| Debugging | Debugging with real devices can be tricky, especially with device security enabled | Virtual devices make step by step debugging easy with the familiar tools to get to the bottom of any issues quicker |
| Cross-Platform | Build your code once on any device with any OS and it will run in our emulator | Build your code once using our emulator and run it on any device with any OS |
Real Device vs the agentM Emulator: When to test on what
The best practices primarily include developing on the right devices for better outcomes.
Since the meldCX emulator offers a better debugging facility, it is best suited to use them during the initial stages of code development. With the frequent iterations that are required in the initial stages, using the meldCX emulator could make the cycle faster and more efficient.
On the other hand, Smoke Testing and User Acceptance Testing can be better done with real devices due to OS build differences and other factors. Parts of Regression testing could still be done using virtual devices but after a point, it is always best to use an actual device before deployment.
When will I need to use an emulator?
We generally recommend using an emulator for the following reasons:
- To speed up development and testing when there is no device available
- For debugging
Is there a different emulator for different devices?
There is no specific emulator to distinguish between devices or operating systems. As our agentM device API is supported across many different devices and operating systems, this enables a single cross-platform API and therefore emulator.
Take a step ahead with meldCX agentM emulator
Here at meldCX, we want to help you get your development and testing process up and running as quickly as possible. While real devices and emulators have their own pros and cons, adopting both for development and testing can provide the best of both worlds.
Register for a demo here today and learn how the meldCX platform and the meldCX emulator can provide:
- Native real device experience, accuracy, and reliability
- Easy debugging like virtual device
- Hassle-free, live and interactive cross-browser development and interactive app development
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“We cut our deployment time from 45 minutes to 45 seconds with meldCX”
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