Microsoft Visual Studio vs Xamarin

2020. Microsoft’s Visual Studio Online code editor is now Visual Studio Codespaces and gets a price drop



Approximately one year ago, Microsoft introduced Visual Studio Online, an online code editor built upon the well-known Visual Studio Code project. This offering essentially provides users with a comprehensive code editor and a hosted environment accessible directly from their web browser. Today, the company has revealed that it will be rebranding this service as Visual Studio Codespaces. Alongside the name change, Microsoft has also implemented a significant price reduction, reducing the cost of the service by over 50%. Additionally, developers now have the flexibility to utilize low-performance virtual machines at a starting price of $0.08 per hour.


2017. Xamarin now lets run and test iOS apps directly from Windows



Until now, Xamarin by Microsoft has enabled developers to create iOS applications within Visual Studio. However, building and testing these apps still required a Mac. The introduction of Xamarin Live Player changes this scenario by allowing developers to deploy, run, test, and debug iOS apps directly from a Windows PC running Visual Studio. To utilize this new functionality, developers need to install the Xamarin Live Player app on their iOS device and pair it with their PC by scanning a QR code displayed on their screen. By offering this capability, Microsoft is bridging the gap for most developers and moving closer to its goal of positioning Windows 10 as the preferred operating system for cross-platform development.


2016. Microsoft's development platform Xamarin integrates with Visual Studio



Following its recent acquisition by Microsoft, Xamarin, the cross-platform development platform, has released updates to enhance almost all of its core features. Xamarin has made its SDKs for Android, iOS, and Mac open-source under the MIT license. These SDKs encompass command-line tools for application development, as well as the cross-platform Xamarin.Forms UI framework. However, the Xamarin IDE for Mac will remain closed-source at present. Many of the new functionalities are integrated with Microsoft's tools, particularly Visual Studio. For instance, iOS developers can now utilize Xamarin's iOS Simulator directly from Visual Studio on Windows, though the simulator itself still requires a networked Mac and Visual Studio establishes a remote connection to it. Additionally, Visual Studio/Xamarin users can deploy apps to iOS devices connected to the Windows machine's USB port directly from Visual Studio.


2016. Microsoft acquired mobile development service Xamarin



Microsoft has acquired Xamarin, a service that enables developers to create fully native applications for multiple platforms using a single shared code base. Since announcing a global partnership in 2013, Microsoft and Xamarin have collaborated closely to simplify the process of building native apps on various platforms within Visual Studio. This acquisition will significantly enhance Microsoft's collection of developer tools and facilitate the growth of mobile and Universal apps for Windows 10 devices. The integration of Xamarin, Visual Studio, Visual Studio Team Services, and Azure will offer a comprehensive solution for mobile app development, encompassing everything necessary to create, test, deliver, and monitor mobile apps across all devices.


2015. Xamarin improves its mobile app development platform



Xamarin, the platform for cross-platform mobile app development with a focus on C#, has unveiled its latest version. This update brings forth a range of new features across Xamarin's suite of tools, which now encompasses frameworks, emulators, mobile app testing services, and analytics. The primary objective is to simplify the overall service and offer developers a more unified experience throughout Xamarin's expanding array of tools and services. As an example, users of Xamarin Studio and Visual Studio can now directly access tests on the Xamarin Test Cloud from their integrated development environments (IDEs). Additionally, the code required for implementing the Xamarin Insights app monitoring service, which aids in identifying performance issues and crashes, is now automatically integrated into project templates. Alongside this update, Xamarin is also making Insights available for general use.


2015. Microsoft launched Visual Studio 2015



Microsoft has officially introduced the latest edition of the Visual Studio integrated development environment (IDE) along with an update to its .NET framework. The availability of Visual Studio 2015 (VS 2015) for download and purchase has been announced. Additionally, Microsoft shared updated download figures for various tools within the Visual Studio ecosystem. Visual Studio Community, an enhanced free version of the software for non-enterprise users, has achieved 5 million downloads since its launch seven months ago. More than 3.2 million developers have registered for Visual Studio Online services. Visual Studio Code, the standalone code editor compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux, has garnered half a million downloads within three months of its release. Notably, over half of these downloads originated from Mac and Linux users. A noteworthy integration in Visual Studio is the inclusion of Apache Cordova, allowing developers to create iOS and Android apps using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.


2015. Microsoft Visual Studio will allow to transform Android and iOS apps to Windows apps



Amidst the challenge of limited applications on its Windows Phone and Windows 8.x platforms, Microsoft has unveiled a solution that allows developers to more seamlessly port their Android applications to Windows devices. Microsoft announced that developers can leverage their existing Java and C++ code from an Android app to create applications for Windows 10 phones, enabling code reuse. Additionally, with new tools available in Visual Studio, developers can repurpose their Objective-C apps from iOS. Furthermore, Microsoft shared that web developers now have the capability to bring their web apps and traditional Windows desktop apps directly to the Windows Store. Previously, while developers could feature their regular Windows apps in the store, purchases had to be made on the developer's website. This update enables apps to be installed directly from the Windows Store, enhancing accessibility for users.


2015. Microsoft launched Visual Studio for OS X and Linux



During its Build developer conference, Microsoft unveiled the introduction of Visual Studio Code, a lightweight and cross-platform code editor designed for creating modern web and cloud applications. This code editor is compatible with OS X, Linux, and Windows, representing Microsoft's first offering of a truly cross-platform code editor for developers. While the complete Visual Studio remains exclusive to Windows, this announcement demonstrates Microsoft's dedication to supporting other operating systems. Visual Studio Code provides developers with built-in support for various programming languages and offers rich code assistance and navigation for each of these languages. Furthermore, JavaScript, TypeScript, Node.js, and ASP.NET 5 developers will benefit from a set of additional tools specifically tailored to their needs. The code editor incorporates essential features such as syntax highlighting, customizable keyboard bindings, bracket matching, and code snippets, making it a comprehensive tool for modern development workflows.


2015. Microsoft simplifies Visual Studio pricing for Enterprise



Microsoft has announced its plans to streamline its offerings for enterprises by merging Visual Studio Premium and Ultimate into a single product with the upcoming release of Visual Studio 2015. The consolidated product, now known as Visual Studio Enterprise With MSDN, will encompass all the features that were previously available in Visual Studio Ultimate, including IntelliTrace in production and CodeLens support. Additionally, Microsoft has reduced the price of the new Enterprise version to slightly below the previous cost of the Premium edition. The initial year subscription for Enterprise with MSDN will be priced at $5,999, followed by subsequent years at $2,569 (compared to the previous prices of $6,119 and $2,569, respectively, for Premium). This represents a significant 55 percent price reduction for existing Ultimate subscribers. The pricing for Visual Studio Pro, which caters to individuals and smaller teams, will remain unchanged at $1,199 for the first year and $799 for renewals.


2014. Microsoft launches free Visual Studio for small teams



Microsoft has introduced the Community edition of Visual Studio IDE as a replacement for the previously limited Visual Studio Express version. Essentially, the Community edition offers the complete functionality of Visual Studio without any restrictions, except for its non-availability for enterprise settings and teams exceeding five members. This shift signifies Visual Studio's transition towards a freemium model. Microsoft has developed a suite of online tools around Visual Studio Online, which it expects users to pay for. The Visual Studio IDE now serves as the gateway to this broader ecosystem. By attracting more developers to this platform, Microsoft aims to increase the adoption of its paid toolset through subscriptions to MSDN and other channels.