How to Build a TODO Android Application with AWS DynamoDB as Database? (original) (raw)

Last Updated : 23 Jul, 2025

This is a TODO application made on android studio IDE, code is written in JAVA, and data store in AWS DynamoDB and fetch to the home screen. The connection established between the application and AWS through Amplify CLI and the data is successful gets stored by creating a TODO Table in DynamoDB, a Schema is also created which shows the structure of data. The data fetched successfully and displayed on the home page of the application. The aim of this project is to show how to connect your android applications with AWS and use the AWS resources(DynamoDB). A sample video is given below to get an idea about what we are going to do in this article.

Before jumping to the implementation have a look at the following terms.

Prerequisite: Install Node.js (version 10.x) install NPM (version 6.x), create an AWS account if you don't have one, install android studio (version 4.0 or higher), android SDK API level 29(android 10), install amplify CLI (write following on the command prompt).

npm install -g @aws-amplify/cli

Step by Step Implementation

1. Configuring Amplify CLI

Step 1: Write the following on the command prompt

amplify configure

Install Amplify

Step 2: If you have already created an IAM user then write "Do you want to use an AWS profile? Yes" and then write below its accessKeyId and secretAccessKey otherwise write "Do you want to use an AWS profile? No" create an IAM user and use its accessKeyId and secretAccessKey.

Configure Amplify

Give permissions

User created

Step 3: Write the following in order to initialize the new Amplify project

amplify init

Initialize Amplify

Step 4: Create backend API by using GraphQL query language then use "amplify publish" to deploy it

amplify add api

amplify push

amplify publish

Add API to your backend

2. Integrate AWS to the android studio with the help of amplify

Step 1: Add the following in the dependencies of build.gradle (Project: Todo) in Gradle Scripts

buildscript { repositories { google() jcenter() }

dependencies { classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:4.1.1'

   // Add this line into `dependencies` in `buildscript`
   classpath 'com.amplifyframework:amplify-tools-gradle-plugin:1.0.2'

} }

allprojects { repositories { google() jcenter() } }

// Add this line at the end of the file apply plugin: 'com.amplifyframework.amplifytools'

Step 2: Add the following in the dependencies of build.gradle (Module: app) in Gradle Scripts. Run Gradle Sync

dependencies { implementation 'com.amplifyframework:aws-api:1.6.9' implementation 'com.amplifyframework:aws-datastore:1.6.9' }

Step 3: In android studio go to Project -> amplify -> app -> backend -> api -> schema.graphql

type Todo @model { id: ID! name: String! description: String }

Step 4: Add the following code in MainActivity & MainActivity2 in the onCreate() method to initialize Amplify

try { Amplify.addPlugin(new AWSDataStorePlugin()); Amplify.configure(getApplicationContext());

 Log.i("Tutorial", "Initialized Amplify");

} catch (AmplifyException e) { Log.e("Tutorial", "Could not initialize Amplify", e); }

Step 5: Add the following code in MainActivity2 in the onCreate() method to creates a Todo item with two properties: a name and a description

Todo todo = Todo.builder() .name(name1) .description(name2) .build();

Step 6: Add the following code in MainActivity2 in the onCreate() method to save items using mutate

Amplify.API.mutate( ModelMutation.create(todo), response -> Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", "Added Todo with id: " + response.getData().getId()), error -> Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Create failed", error) );

Go to your AWS management console -> AppSync -> Select your API -> Data Sources -> select todo table -> items

Data successfully stored

Step 7: Add the following code in MainActivity in the onCreate() method to fetch data/run queries to retrieve the stored data

Amplify.API.query( ModelQuery.list(Todo.class), response -> { for (Todo todo : response.getData()) { ls.add(todo.getName()); Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", todo.getName()); } }, error -> Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Query failure", error) );

Below are the complete codes for:

MainActivity file(Home page of App)

XML `

<ListView
    android:id="@+id/lt"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent">
</ListView>

<com.google.android.material.floatingactionbutton.FloatingActionButton
    android:id="@+id/fab"
    android:layout_width="221dp"
    android:layout_height="53dp"
    android:layout_alignParentRight="true"
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_marginEnd="25dp"
    android:layout_marginRight="25dp"
    android:layout_marginBottom="70dp"
    android:clickable="true"
    app:srcCompat="@android:drawable/ic_input_add" />

Java

package com.example.shreyaawsapp;

import android.content.Intent; import android.os.AsyncTask; import android.os.Bundle; import android.os.Handler; import android.os.Looper; import android.util.Log; import android.view.View; import android.widget.ArrayAdapter; import android.widget.ListView; import android.widget.Toast; import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity; import com.amplifyframework.AmplifyException; import com.amplifyframework.api.aws.AWSApiPlugin; import com.amplifyframework.api.graphql.model.ModelQuery; import com.amplifyframework.core.Amplify; import com.amplifyframework.datastore.generated.model.Todo; import com.google.android.material.floatingactionbutton.FloatingActionButton; import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.List;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

  // declaration
public FloatingActionButton btn;
public ListView lv;
public String[] st;
int i = 0;
Handler handler;

  // the array adapter converts an ArrayList of objects
// into View items filled into the ListView container
ArrayAdapter<String> arrayAdapter;

  // list to store data
public static List<String> ls;

@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState)
{
    super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
    setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
    
      // provide id to the layout items
    btn = findViewById(R.id.fab);
    st = new String[100];

    lv = findViewById(R.id.lt);
    
      // set listener to the floating button which takes
    // you to the next activity where you add and sore
    // your data
    btn.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
        @Override public void onClick(View v)
        {
            Intent intent = new Intent(MainActivity.this, MainActivity2.class);
            startActivity(intent);
        }
    });
    ls = new ArrayList<String>();
   
      // add the code below to initialize Amplpify
    try {
        // Add these lines to add the AWSApiPlugin plugins
        Amplify.addPlugin(new AWSApiPlugin());
        Amplify.configure(getApplicationContext());
        Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", "Initialized Amplify");
    }
    catch (AmplifyException error) {
        Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Could not initialize Amplify", error);
    }
   
      // add the code below to fetch 
      // data/run queries to
    // retrieve the stored data
    Amplify.API.query(ModelQuery.list(Todo.class), response -> {
            for (Todo todo : response.getData()) {
                ls.add(todo.getName());
                Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", todo.getName());
            }
        },
        error -> Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Query failure", error));
  
    handler = new Handler();
    final Runnable r = new Runnable() {
        public void run()
        {
            handler.postDelayed(this, 2000);
            arrayAdapter = new ArrayAdapter<String>(
                getApplicationContext(),
                android.R.layout.simple_list_item_1,
                ls);
            lv.setAdapter(arrayAdapter);
            arrayAdapter.notifyDataSetChanged();
        }
    };
    handler.postDelayed(r, 1000);
}

}

`

MainActivity2 file(Write notes page)

XML `

<androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android" xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto" xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools" android:layout_width="match_parent" android:layout_height="match_parent" tools:context=".MainActivity2">

<EditText
    android:id="@+id/edname"
    android:layout_width="347dp"
    android:layout_height="54dp"
    android:layout_marginTop="110dp"
    android:ems="10"
    android:hint="Title"
    android:inputType="textPersonName"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent" />

<EditText
    android:id="@+id/eddes"
    android:layout_width="347dp"
    android:layout_height="54dp"
    android:layout_marginTop="216dp"
    android:ems="10"
    android:inputType="textPersonName"
    android:hint="Description"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent" />

<Button
    android:id="@+id/button2"
    android:layout_width="134dp"
    android:layout_height="53dp"
    android:layout_marginStart="138dp"
    android:layout_marginTop="69dp"
    android:layout_marginEnd="138dp"
    android:text="Store in data"
    app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
    app:layout_constraintTop_toBottomOf="@+id/eddes" />

</androidx.constraintlayout.widget.ConstraintLayout>

Java

package com.example.shreyaawsapp;

import android.content.Intent; import android.net.wifi.p2p.WifiP2pManager; import android.os.Bundle; import android.util.Log; import android.view.View; import android.widget.ArrayAdapter; import android.widget.Button; import android.widget.EditText; import android.widget.ListView; import android.widget.Toast; import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity; import com.amplifyframework.AmplifyException; import com.amplifyframework.api.aws.AWSApiPlugin; import com.amplifyframework.api.graphql.model.ModelMutation; import com.amplifyframework.api.graphql.model.ModelQuery; import com.amplifyframework.core.Amplify; import com.amplifyframework.datastore.generated.model.Todo; import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.List;

public class MainActivity2 extends AppCompatActivity {

// declaration
public EditText name, desc;
public Button btn;

@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState)
{
    // give id to the items
    super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
    setContentView(R.layout.activity_main2);
    name = findViewById(R.id.edname);
    desc = findViewById(R.id.eddes);
    btn = findViewById(R.id.button2);
  
    // add the code below to initialize Amplify
    try {
        // Add these lines to add the AWSApiPlugin plugins
        Amplify.addPlugin(new AWSApiPlugin());
        Amplify.configure(getApplicationContext());
        Log.i("MyAmplifyApp", "Initialized Amplify");
    }
    catch (AmplifyException error) {
        Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Could not initialize Amplify", error);
    }
    // set listener on the store data button to store
    // data in dynamoDB
    btn.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
        @Override public void onClick(View v)
        {
            String name1 = name.getText().toString();
            String name2 = desc.getText().toString();
            // add the code below to create a todo item
            // with two properties a name and a
            // description
            Todo todo = Todo.builder()
                            .name(name1)
                            .description(name2)
                            .build();
            // add the code below  to save item using mutate
            Amplify.API.mutate(ModelMutation.create(todo), response -> Log.i(
                    "MyAmplifyApp", "Added Todo with id: " + response.getData().getId()),
                error
                -> Log.e("MyAmplifyApp", "Create failed", error));
        }
    });
}
// move to the next activity
@Override public void onBackPressed()
{
    super.onBackPressed();
    startActivity(new Intent(MainActivity2.this, MainActivity.class));
}

}

`

Output:

Source Code: https://github.com/shreya593/Shreyaawsapp