Beta Testing of a product is performed by “real users” of the software application in a “real environment” and can be considered as a form of external User Acceptance Testing.
Beta version of the software is released to a limited number of end-users of the product to obtain feedback on the product quality. Beta testing reduces product failure risks and provides increased quality of the product through customer validation.
It is the final test before shipping a product to the customers. Direct feedback from customers is a major advantage of Beta Testing. This testing helps to test the product in a real time environment.
In short, beta testing can be defined as- the testing carried out by real users in a real environment.
Advantages of Beta Testing
- Opportunity to get your application into the hands of users prior to releasing it to the general public. Beta testers can discover issues with your application that you may have not noticed, such as confusing application flow, and even crashes.
- Reduces product failure risk via customer validation.
- Improves product quality via customer feedback.
- Cost effective compared to similar data gathering methods.
- Creates goodwill with customers and increases customer satisfaction.
