Easy interview questions in Mobile Dev, page 7
Implicit vs explicit animations: AnimatedContainer or AnimationController?
Knowledge of Flutter's implicit versus explicit animation paradigms. Implicit widgets auto-animate property changes on rebuild; explicit controllers manage playback manually. Red flag: saying explicit is always superior or that implicit animations cannot stop.
Describe CustomPaint and CustomPainter and implement a circle
This tests Flutter's render delegation. Separate CustomPaint, the canvas widget, from CustomPainter, the drawing logic; cover canvas.drawCircle and shouldRepaint returning false. Red flags: calling setState in paint or ignoring shouldRepaint.
The JS thread and why it bottlenecks performance
A single thread runs your JS, React reconciliation, and event handling; blocking it delays updates and gestures, and it is separate from the UI thread.
How do AnimationController and TickerProvider work together to drive animations?
Tests your grasp of Flutter's imperative animation engine. AnimationController stores value and direction; TickerProvider (via vsync) schedules frame callbacks; paired they emit 60–120 ticks per second.
What is Dependency Injection and Hilt's benefit over manual instantiation?
Tests your grasp of inversion of control and why frameworks matter. A good answer defines DI as supplying dependencies from outside, states Hilt automates object graph creation and scoping, and notes manual instantiation scatters construction logic.
FlatList and list virtualization
Use FlatList (or SectionList) which virtualizes, rendering only items near the viewport and recycling as you scroll, unlike ScrollView which mounts everything.
How do you inject UserRepository into a ViewModel with Hilt?
Tests Hilt constructor injection for classes you own. Annotate UserRepository's constructor with @Inject so Hilt auto-provides it to consumers like a @HiltViewModel. Red flag: using a @Provides module for a class you control.
Cost of console.log and production-safe debugging
Each console.log serializes data and, when devtools are attached, crosses the bridge synchronously, blocking the JS thread; strip logs in release and use Flipper, dev tools, or remote crash and analytics tools.
Unit test versus UI test in Xcode
Unit tests (XCTest) exercise code logic in-process and fast; UI tests (XCUITest) drive the app through the accessibility layer, slower and end-to-end.
What native iOS and Android config does the Flutter camera plugin need?
Tests native platform knowledge beyond Dart. iOS requires NSCameraUsageDescription and NSMicrophoneUsageDescription in Info.plist. Android needs minSdk 24 and choosing between CameraX or Camera2 implementations.
How do you make a network request in an Activity using coroutines?
This tests main thread safety and coroutine dispatchers. A strong answer cites NetworkOnMainThreadException, uses lifecycleScope, and switches to Dispatchers.IO. Red flag: suggesting Dispatchers.Main for the network call or omitting the exception entirely.
Explain the purpose of MethodChannel and how it enables Dart-to-native calls
MethodChannel lets Dart encode a method call; the platform host decodes it on the main thread, runs native code, and returns an async result.
What is the difference between viewModelScope and lifecycleScope?
This tests scope ownership across configuration changes. viewModelScope survives rotation because it lives in ViewModel, while lifecycleScope dies with UI; use former for logic and latter for UI tasks. Never launch data loads in lifecycleScope.
How do you send a one-off event from native to JS?
Emit an event from native using an event emitter and subscribe in JS with NativeEventEmitter, or resolve a promise/callback for a single result.
Adding a Swift Package dependency in Xcode
Add via File menu, paste the repo URL, choose a version rule like up-to-next-major, link the product to your target.
When would you choose Foreground Service over WorkManager?
Tests immediate user-visible work versus deferrable jobs. Strong answers cite a notification-driven use case the user actively expects, like live navigation or a workout. Red flag: claiming WorkManager replaces real-time foreground tasks.
Package.swift manifest: library vs executable products
The manifest declares name, targets, dependencies, and products; a library is consumed by other code while an executable produces a runnable binary with an entry point.
What is the difference between test and androidTest source sets?
Say test runs on the JVM for unit tests mocking Android classes, while androidTest runs on device for instrumented tests.
What are the three pillars of the New Architecture?
JSI for direct JS-native calls, Fabric as the new renderer, and TurboModules for lazy native modules, all unified by CodeGen for type-safe bindings.
Why mock a Repository dependency in a ViewModel unit test?
This tests your grasp of test isolation. A great answer says mocking eliminates real database or network dependencies so you can verify ViewModel state changes in isolation. A red flag is insisting on using the real Repository inside the unit test.
We are hiring for this. Every open role lists the topics its interview covers, so you can prepare for the real thing rather than guessing.
See open roles