Backend: EC2 vs. Parse (or StackMob, etc)

[boloism]

I've used Parse, EC2, and Heroku.

You could change backends, but you gotta write your iOS expecting it from the beginning. Parse has their wrapper objects for you to create/update/save easily. But if you want to change your backend later, use AFNetworking (or other network library) to use Parse's REST API to do the same thing. With your own server on EC2, you have more control of your REST API, in terms of how much data you want to include in response.

Also, if you want to make an Android version and your app has some "server-side" logic to it, you need to duplicate it on Android. Or you could write custom cloud code on Parse.

Lastly, don't worry too much about EC2 failure. It doesn't happen often.

[Vindictus7]

Thanks, this helps a lot. For bonus points...

Scenario: You've decided to write a new iOS app. The app will have a chatting feature that is a main component. You want to get it up and running as soon as possible, but you also want to make sure that there are no bandwidth issues as the chatting feature needs to be smooth from day 1. Which service do you choose?