Question

I work on an experienced and diverse development team and we are preparing to approach our first mobile development which will be for Windows Mobile 6 (platform changes are not an option).

We have skills and experience in both Visual C++ and .Net technologies for Windows desktop and server development.

The mobile development will include some image processing, and read/write access to a bluetooth device. Unfortunately I can’t really give any more details than that.

We are trying to choose between writing the mobile client using managed code or native code. We would use C# or C++ respectively.

My questions are:

• How big is the expected performance differential between these languages? I have heard that native code is significantly faster on mobile devices, but I would love to hear from someone with experience.

• Are there any major advantages to either language in terms of working with the Windows Mobile services for accessing bluetooth devices?

• Is there an impact on battery life between managed or native code?

• Are there any other major should-knows for us to consider?

I appreciate your feedback.

Answer 1

A very similar question was asked and answered just a few days ago. You can find useful information there.

Short answers to your questions:

• Native code is faster, but for many applications the speed difference won’t be noticeable. Don’t use native code just for the speed, unless this is a key factor for your application. Managed applications can also run fast – it may take them longer to launch.
• There is a good Bluetooth library for .NET applications. I am not aware of a similar library for C++ applications.
• It is up to your design to achieve good battery life. Choice of platform doesn’t matter.