29.3 · Live and timed rounds: machine coding, a networking layer and review-then-implement
Many iOS loops include a build or debugging round on a clock: a small app in an hour, a networking layer, or reviewing existing code and then extending it. Judged on how you plan, structure and test, not on the number of screens.
Mental model. Spend the first minutes on requirements and a plan, get one thin vertical slice working early, keep the layers separate so you can test them, and say what you would do with more time.
The timed round
How to spend 60 to 90 minutes, what to build first, and what is scored.
- You get 60 to 90 minutes to build a small app live (a photo search, a movie list from JSON, a recipe app, a list with counters). How do you spend the time and what do interviewers look for?
Reported formats include a Flickr-style photo search built in about 90 minutes (Uber), a movie or recipe app from provided JSON (Swiggy, DoorDash), and a… - Machine-coding round: build a generic networking layer in about 45 minutes. What do you build, and how do you test it without a server?
Reported for Razorpay (anonymous, unverified), and a fair test of design sense. Build four small pieces. An Endpoint protocol (path, method, query, body) with… - In a live round you are given existing code to review and then asked to add a feature to it. How do you review it quickly and what do you fix first?
Reported for Uber and Microsoft (anonymous, unverified). The skill is reading before writing. Spend the first minutes asking what the code does and what you…