While it’s not always ideal to store large media files directly in a database, mobile databases often manage metadata and references to locally stored media. For example, a photo app might store image paths, tags, and timestamps in SQLite, while actual image files reside in internal or external storage. Some databases, like Realm, support storing binary blobs (e.g., thumbnails or audio clips), although excessive use may affect performance.
Developers must balance between database size and access mobile database speed. Compression, lazy loading, and file system linking are often used in combination with databases to efficiently manage media-heavy mobile applications.
Using GraphQL with Mobile Databases
GraphQL, originally designed for APIs, is now being integrated with mobile databases for structured, efficient querying. Some offline-first databases like Realm and Parse have introduced GraphQL APIs that allow apps to fetch only the data fields they need.
This minimizes over-fetching, improves performance, and reduces data usage—essential for mobile environments. Developers can write unified queries for both local and remote data, enabling seamless caching and synchronization. GraphQL also promotes clearer schema definitions and better client-server contract enforcement.
While not yet universally supported in all mobile database engines, GraphQL is gaining popularity as a developer-friendly interface for mobile data management.