Essential Sanity Test Cases for Mobile Apps: A Comprehensive Guide

Are you unsure about where to start when testing mobile apps? Not sure which test cases to cover? Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. In this guide, we’ll cover essential sanity test cases that every mobile app should undergo. These test cases are designed to verify that the core functionalities of the app are working as expected.

Introduction

Sanity testing is like giving your app a quick check-up after making changes or updates. It’s a focused version of regression testing that ensures the core features of your app are still working as they should. By catching any critical issues early on, sanity testing helps keep your app stable and running smoothly. In this blog, we’ll walk you through some key sanity test cases, organized by functionality—especially for video content-related apps—to help you keep your app in top shape.

Test Case Categories

1. Installation & Uninstallation

   • Install the App: Verify that the app can be installed successfully on various devices and operating systems.

   • Uninstall the App: Ensure that the app can be uninstalled completely without leaving residual files or affecting device performance.

2. Splash Screen

   • UI Display: Check the splash screen’s user interface (UI) for correct display and a smooth transition to the main app screen.

3. Soft Wall/Hard Wall

   • Landscape Mode: Verify that the app’s UI adjusts properly when the device is rotated to landscape mode.

   • Portrait Mode: Similarly, ensure that the UI is displayed correctly in portrait mode.

4. User Authentication

   • Sign In: Ensure users can sign in successfully using valid credentials.

   • Forgot Password: Confirm that the "Forgot Password" option sends a password reset email to users.

   • Sign In with Facebook: Test Facebook sign-in functionality with and without the Facebook app installed. For example, a popular social media app faced issues with the Facebook sign-in feature. During sanity testing, it was discovered that the sign-in failed for users with older versions of the Facebook app. This issue was quickly fixed, preventing potential user frustration and ensuring a smooth login experience.

   • Sign In with Google: Test Google sign-in functionality with and without the Gmail app installed.

   • Logout: Ensure that users can log out of their account successfully and that their session is ended completely.

   • Signup: Test the signup process to ensure new users can register successfully. Verify that the process includes all necessary steps and validations. Also, ensure to check signup with Google and signup with Facebook.

5. Guest User Functionality

   • Visibility of Sign-In Option: Verify that the login option is available in the navigation drawer/settings for guest users, if applicable.

   • Sign-In Prompt: Check that guest users are prompted to sign in when accessing restricted features like Watchlist or Download.

6. Subscription and Access

   • Unsubscribed Users: Test that unsubscribed users cannot play or download videos but can still add videos to their Watchlist. Ensure that subscription-related options are hidden for unsubscribed users.

   • Pre-Complete/Subscription Required Pop-Up: Verify that a pop-up appears for guest and unsubscribed users when attempting to access paid content.

7. Subscription Management

   • iOS Subscription Flow: Validate the entire subscription process, from plan purchase to account creation or skipping, including managing subscriptions and account linking.

   • Android Subscription Flow: Test subscription purchase and cancellation, ensuring that the app reflects the correct subscription status. Check cross-platform subscription functionality and verify that subscriptions persist even after app uninstallation.

8. Mail chimp Integration

   • Subscription Updates: Confirm that Mail chimp integration correctly handles subscription start, cancellation, upgrade, and renewal events.

9. Navigation and User Interface

   • Navigation Drawer: Ensure all options in the hamburger menu are tappable and functional.

   • Home Page: Verify that users are directed to the home page post-sign-in and check the UI and functionality of the home page elements.

10. Content Management (Video Content Apps)

    • Watchlist: Test adding and removing videos from the Watchlist and verify that the latest added video appears at the bottom of the list.

    • History: Check that users can delete videos from History and that the last viewed details are correctly displayed. Ensure users can play videos from History.

11. Video Playback (Video Content Apps)

    • Video Detail Page: Verify that users land on the video detail page from any location, check the UI, and ensure functionality such as adding/removing videos from the Watchlist.

    • Live Player Page: Ensure the live player displays correctly for live videos and that they are not seekable.

    • Video Player Page: Test video playback controls, including seeking, volume control, resolution change, and AirPlay functionality. Confirm that orientation changes are handled correctly and that the UpNext page displays appropriately.

12. Autoplay and Resume Functionality (Video Content Apps)

    • Autoplay: Verify that Autoplay works as expected, playing related content sequentially and stopping after all content is played.

    • Resume Functionality: Check that videos resume from their last saved position and that the progress bar displays correctly for videos watched for over 30 seconds.

13. Additional Features (Video Content Apps)

    • Recommended Videos Tray: Ensure recommended videos are displayed on the video detail page.

    • Latest Videos Tray: Verify that the latest videos are visible on the home page.

    • Pull to Refresh: Test that pulling down to refresh updates the "Continue Watching" tray with the latest watched videos.

14. Casting and Streaming

    • Casting Devices: Verify that casting to devices (Chrome cast, Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, Android TV) works correctly, including device list display, casting status, and control functionality.

    • Casting Resumption: Ensure the app resumes playback on the device after disconnecting from a casting device.

15. General Functionalities

    • Content Filtering: Test that content filtering options work correctly and return appropriate results.

    • Search Functionality: Ensure the search feature returns accurate and relevant results.

    • Push Notifications: Verify that push notifications can be sent when enabled and not sent when disabled. Also, ensure deep linking functionality for push notifications is working correctly for any video ID.

      
      

Conclusion

Sanity testing is your go-to method for keeping your mobile app running smoothly and reliably. By using the sanity test cases from this guide, you'll be able to catch and fix any critical issues early, ensuring your app continues to deliver a great experience. Regular sanity checks will help you keep your app in top shape, so your users enjoy a seamless and dependable experience every time they use it.

If you have any additional test cases or experiences to share, feel free to leave a comment below. Happy App testing!