Why Use Firebase?

Imagine this, you have an idea that could be the next big thing. 0:00 You're so excited to get working on it. 0:04 Immediately, you shoot out a text to a few of your developer 0:06 buddies trying to spur some excitement amongst them and get them to help you out. 0:09 Before you know it, 0:13 you guys are hacking away on the app prototype in your basement. 0:14 Sleep is replaced by seemingly gallons of coffee and energy drinks, and 0:18 you all lose track of time. 0:21 You've got the interface looking perfect, animations are smooth. 0:22 And you've even stirred up some excitement on social media. 0:27 This is it, we're gonna be huge, you think to yourself. 0:29 Just one minor issue, nobody has set up the back-end yet. 0:33 How are we going to authenticate our users? 0:37 What about storage for their awesome cat pictures? 0:39 [SOUND] How about user communication? 0:42 How are you going to grow user engagement with your app? 0:44 How will you even know how many people are using the app? 0:47 What about crashes? 0:50 We're all highly competent developers, but maybe a bug sneaks through our QA process. 0:52 Early on that's bound to happen, right? 0:56 There are about a million different Android phones we need to test this on to 0:59 make sure we don't frustrate any of our user base. 1:02 How are we going to get our hands on all of those devices for testing? 1:04 I know, I know, perhaps that's something you should have planned for 1:08 before you got hacking. 1:11 But hey, we're all guilty of poor planning at some point in our lives. 1:12 Just roll with me here in this hypothetical example. 1:16 These are all questions that should come up when putting together the next hot app. 1:19 Luckily, one of your developers begins to vaguely recall a presentation about 1:24 something called Firebase. 1:28 Immediately the Google foo intensifies, and your team begins realizing that 1:29 Firebase is the perfect solution to all of the issues you currently face. 1:33 Firebase's motto is Develop, Grow and Earn. 1:38 And after all, isn't that everyone's goal? 1:41 The realtime Database, cloud messaging, authentication, cloud Storage, and 1:43 hosting all provide you with the tools to focus on development and 1:48 let them handle the back-end specifics. 1:51 With analytics, remote configuration capabilities, 1:53 push notifications, Google app indexing, dynamic links, 1:57 and app invites, you can grow your application beyond your wildest dreams. 2:00 After you've developed your app and tweaked it to perfection, 2:05 Firebase's integration with AdMob will help the cash start flowing in. 2:08 Okay, so that works great if you're trying to be the next big startup. 2:12 But what if you're a project manager for an established organization trying to 2:16 make a decision on how to add a particular feature to your team's application? 2:20 Is Firebase a good fit for you? 2:24 The answer is, without a doubt, absolutely. 2:26 Due to the modular nature of Firebase you can use whichever of its features that 2:29 suit your use case. 2:33 Imagine there was an app used by billions that let you read 159 characters of 2:34 someone's thoughts at a time? 2:38 Revolutionary, I know. 2:41 What if their team wanted to test how user behavior would change if they wanted to 2:43 allow a specific demographic of their users to post 200 characters at a time 2:47 instead? 2:50 Firebase remote config would easily allow them to select a demographic 2:52 to allow such a thing. 2:55 How about an app that allows you to give strangers rides to try to replace taxis? 2:57 What if they wanted to send push notifications whenever their drivers were 3:01 close to picking up their passengers? 3:04 Firebase push notifications would work perfectly for that. 3:06 Firebase offers features for every use case. 3:10 I hope I've begun to shed some light on how it can benefit you and your team. 3:13 Another thing that makes Firebase so user friendly is it's scaling capabilities. 3:17 Let's check out some information on Firebase's pricing model. 3:22 Feel free to follow along with the link in the teacher's notes. 3:25 Included free without limits are analytics, Google app indexing, 3:28 authentication, cloud messaging, crash reporting, 3:32 dynamic links, app invites, push notifications and remote config. 3:34 Just imagine all the time you would save by not having to create that functionality 3:39 in your app from scratch. 3:42 All the other features, including the realtime database, storage, hosting, and 3:43 test lab, include generous free quotas that you would more than likely never have 3:47 to worry about for hobby projects and proof-of-concept projects. 3:51 The free tier for the realtime database comes with the ability for 3:55 a hundred users to connect simultaneously, use 1 GB of storage, and 3:57 allow users to download 10 GB per month. 4:01 There is also a monthly payment plan with higher limits. 4:04 And if neither the free tiered nor 4:06 the monthly paid plans suit your needs, there's a pay as you go plan. 4:08 I know it's always nice to get free stuff. 4:12 But as my grandpa used to say, if you're not paying taxes, you're not making money. 4:14 So rather than being sad that you have to pay money if you cross a certain 4:19 threshold, take that as a sign of success that your app has made it and 4:22 you're in the big times now. 4:26 I hope these two videos have helped convince you that Firebase is a valuable 4:28 tool for your development life cycle. 4:31 Continue on to our platform-specific workshops in the teacher's notes to learn 4:34 how to start using Firebase today. 4:37