Native Android

Native Android (Kotlin / Jetpack Compose) Skill

When to use

• Creating or modifying Compose screens, composables, or ViewModels
• Designing unidirectional data flow with StateFlow, SharedFlow, or LiveData
• Integrating Jetpack libraries (Room, DataStore, WorkManager, CameraX, etc.)
• Configuring Gradle build scripts, product flavors, or signing configs
• Diagnosing ANRs, memory leaks (LeakCanary), or slow Compose recompositions
• Preparing an app for Google Play review and submission

Workflow

1. Confirm minSdk / targetSdk and Kotlin version — check app/build.gradle.kts. New APIs must be guarded with @RequiresApi(Build.VERSION_CODES.X) or if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= ...).
2. Architecture: follow the official Android Architecture (MVVM + Repository) unless team has adopted MVI. Structure: UI layer (Compose) → ViewModel → Repository → Data sources.
3. Compose UI structure:
   • Each screen is a @Composable function that takes UI state and callbacks as parameters (no ViewModel reference inside composable except at the screen root)
   • Extract repeated sub-composables into separate functions; keep them stateless and testable
   • Use remember for object instances that survive recomposition; rememberSaveable for state that survives process death
4. State and data flow:
   • ViewModel exposes state as StateFlow<UiState> (sealed class or data class); screen collects with collectAsStateWithLifecycle()
   • One-shot events (navigation, toasts) via Channel<UiEvent> consumed with LaunchedEffect
   • Never expose mutable state; back each MutableStateFlow with a read-only StateFlow property
5. Dependency injection: use Hilt (@HiltViewModel, @AndroidEntryPoint). One module per feature or layer. Do not use ServiceLocator patterns or manual DI in new code.
6. Coroutines:
   • Launch coroutines from ViewModel using viewModelScope; from a Repository use withContext(Dispatchers.IO) for blocking I/O
   • Never use GlobalScope; never use runBlocking on the main thread
   • Collect Flow in the UI with collectAsStateWithLifecycle (lifecycle-aware, cancels on stop)
7. Data persistence:
   • Structured data: Room with typed DAOs; use Flow<T> return types for reactive queries
   • Preferences: DataStore<Preferences> (replaces SharedPreferences); never use SharedPreferences in new code
   • Sensitive data: Android EncryptedSharedPreferences or Keystore-backed encryption; never store tokens in plaintext
8. Networking: Retrofit + OkHttp + Kotlin serialization (kotlinx.serialization). Define one ApiService interface per backend domain. Use an OkHttp Interceptor for auth headers and logging (disable logging interceptor in release builds).
9. Performance pass before release:
   • Run Layout Inspector → Recomposition counts; eliminate unnecessary recompositions with remember, derivedStateOf, or key()
   • Use LeakCanary in debug builds; fix all leaks before shipping
   • Profile with Android Studio Profiler (CPU, Memory, Network); target cold start <500 ms on a mid-range device
10. Play Store preparation:
    • Set targetSdk to the current year's requirement; update annually
    • Fill DATA_SAFETY section in Play Console before submission
    • Sign the release AAB (not APK) with a Keystore stored outside the repo; use Play App Signing
    • Run ./gradlew lint and fix all errors; treat warnings as errors in CI (warningsAsErrors = true)

Standards

Common mistakes to avoid

• Context leaks — passing Activity context into a singleton (Hilt @Singleton module, Repository, etc.) causes the Activity to be retained. Use Application context for singletons.
• Blocking the main thread — Room and Retrofit calls on Dispatchers.Main cause ANRs. Always use withContext(Dispatchers.IO) or mark DAO functions suspend.
• Recomposition storms — reading a StateFlow directly inside a composable without collectAsStateWithLifecycle triggers recomposition on every emission regardless of lifecycle. Always use the lifecycle-aware collector.
• derivedStateOf misuse — wrap computations in derivedStateOf only when the derived value changes less frequently than the inputs; otherwise it adds overhead for no benefit.
• Hardcoded strings in Compose — use stringResource(R.string.key) not hardcoded literals; all user-visible text must be in strings.xml for localization and accessibility.
• Missing <queries> in AndroidManifest for Android 11+ — apps targeting API 30+ cannot see other installed apps without declaring intents in <queries>; omitting this silently breaks package-visibility checks.
• Not disabling debug flags in release — StrictMode, LeakCanary, logging interceptors, and android:debuggable must all be disabled or stripped in release builds. Gate them with BuildConfig.DEBUG.

Output format

Typical feature deliverable structure:

app/src/main/java/com/example/app/
  feature/<feature>/
    ui/
      <Feature>Screen.kt          # Root @Composable; collects state from VM
      <Feature>ViewModel.kt       # @HiltViewModel; exposes StateFlow<UiState>
      <Feature>UiState.kt         # Sealed class or data class for screen state
      components/
        <Feature>Card.kt          # Stateless sub-composable
    data/
      <Feature>Repository.kt      # Interface + impl; injected via Hilt
      <Feature>Dao.kt             # Room DAO with suspend / Flow functions
      <Feature>ApiService.kt      # Retrofit interface
      <Feature>Dto.kt             # @Serializable network model
    domain/
      <Feature>Model.kt           # Domain model mapped from DTO
  core/
    network/
      ApiClient.kt                # OkHttp + Retrofit setup
    database/
      AppDatabase.kt              # Room database singleton
test/
  feature/<feature>/
    <Feature>ViewModelTest.kt
    <Feature>RepositoryTest.kt

Related checklists

• .claude/checklists/security.md
• .claude/checklists/performance.md
• .claude/checklists/accessibility.md
• .claude/checklists/production.md

Related agents

• .claude/agents/engineering/mobile-engineer.md
• .claude/agents/design/mobile-ux-specialist.md
• .claude/agents/quality/performance-engineer.md
• .claude/agents/quality/security-auditor.md
• .claude/agents/quality/accessibility-auditor.md