Storage


What Do We Mean by Storage?

Definition: Android is one of the most used operating systems since electronic devices came into being. It allows many types of storage options for various applications. These locations for storage are mostly external storage, SQLite storage, internal storage, shared preferences, and storage through a network connection.

The option you pick is based on your specified requirements. By this, we mean that there are two types of data. One must be kept privately in your application as it is sensitive. On the contrary, the other one can be shared with the audience as well as the other apps. Usually, the size of the file influences the type of storage.

The storage options to save your data are:

External Storage

Every individual is familiar with this type of data storage. To keep the public, external storage is frequently used. The medium that provides this storage is usually an SD Card. Apart from this, there are many useful removable options available if your device does not accept an SD card. Today a lot of devices do not support SD cards. Moreover, you can’t get access to external storage.

Shared Preferences

Shared preferences offer an easy interface to store and recover minor data that is unstructured with the help of a key-value pair. It has a string key that has a small value according to the data. In shared preferences, data persevere over the session of the user. So, if the app is stopped and you restart it or reboot the gadget, your data can be retrieved. The data is only lost when you remove the app or delete the data.

Internal Storage

In the internal storage, the private data is saved. No other app can use or alter this data. It is a non-volatile memory that ensures the availability of data on the device. Additionally, you have the choice to retain text and binary data in this storage. For instance, the pictures and videos that you have in the internal memory of your phone. However, if you uninstall an app from your device, the data of the app is lost.

SQLite Databases

This a type of private database where you can save all of the structured data. Nowadays, for the collection and transmission of your data in real-time, a majority of the applications are merely clients that connect with a server. That means, when you don’t have an active Internet connection, these applications are of no value. as a result, when you open the app, you will see only a blank screen. To manage your data when your phone doesn’t have an internet connection, an SQLite database was created. Like most of the storage, it also deletes the data with the app.

Network Connection

This storage keeps the data on the web. The network connection retains the information on your personal network server. This has a use when you want to send the data to a back-end server. As the backend server preserves the database, an app on your device, you can retrieve it. the data is received or sent in various formats. There are several APIs through which you can access this data.

In this blog, we are going to look at two of the most popular means of storage—internal and external storage.