Build Variants
Build variants are different versions of your application that can be generated from the same codebase. They allow you to customize your app for different environments, such as development, testing, and production, or to create different flavors of your app, such as free and paid versions.
Characteristics
– Combination of Build Types and Product Flavors: Build variants are created by combining build types (like debug and release) with product flavors (like free and paid).
– Customization: Each build variant can have its own resources, code, and settings, allowing for tailored features and configurations.
– Gradle Support: Build variants are managed through Gradle, which automates the build process and allows for easy configuration.
Examples
– Debug and Release Variants: A typical Android app might have a debug build variant for development and a release build variant for production.
– Free and Paid Versions: An app could have a free variant with ads and a paid variant without ads, each having different resources and features.
– Different API Keys: You might have different build variants that use different API keys for development and production environments.
