One of the main advantages of ISO 25010 is that it reflects the current trends and challenges of software development and usage. It covers more aspects of software quality, such as security, compatibility, and accessibility, that are becoming more important in the era of cloud computing, mobile devices, and diverse user groups. It also emphasizes the role of the context and the environment in which the software is used, and how it affects the user experience and satisfaction. ISO 25010 also provides more flexibility and guidance for tailoring the software quality model to specific domains and purposes, and for defining relevant quality requirements and criteria.

There is no definitive answer to which software quality model is better or more suitable for your project or organization. It depends on various factors, such as your goals, scope, constraints, resources, and preferences. However, some general guidelines can help you make an informed decision. You may prefer ISO 25010 if you want to adopt a more comprehensive and contemporary approach to software quality, that takes into account the user needs and expectations, the context and environment of use, and the diversity and complexity of software systems. You may prefer ISO 9126 if you want to follow a simpler and more established approach to software quality, that focuses on the functional and non-functional aspects of software products, and the internal, external, and quality in use metrics.

One of the main disadvantages of ISO 25010 is that it is more complex and abstract than ISO 9126. It has more characteristics and subcharacteristics, and some of them are overlapping or ambiguous. For example, usability and user error protection are both subcharacteristics of functionality and quality in use, but they have different meanings and implications in each perspective. ISO 25010 also lacks a clear and consistent definition of some terms and concepts, such as context, situation, and stakeholder. Moreover, ISO 25010 does not provide a standardized method for measuring and evaluating software quality, leaving it to the discretion of the users and practitioners.

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ISO 9126 is the predecessor of ISO 25010, and it defines six main characteristics of software quality: functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability, and portability. Each characteristic has a number of subcharacteristics that further specify the attributes of software quality. ISO 9126 also provides a framework for evaluating software quality based on internal, external, and quality in use metrics. Internal metrics measure the quality of the software code and design, external metrics measure the quality of the software behavior and performance, and quality in use metrics measure the quality of the software from the user's point of view.

If you are involved in software quality, you may have heard of ISO 25010 and ISO 9126. These are two standards that define software quality models, or sets of characteristics and subcharacteristics that measure how well a software product meets its requirements and expectations. But what are the differences between them, and what are the pros and cons of using one over the other? In this article, we will compare and contrast ISO 25010 and ISO 9126, and help you decide which one suits your needs better.

ISO 25010 is the latest version of the software quality model standard, published in 2011. It replaces ISO 9126, which was first issued in 1991 and revised in 2001. ISO 25010 expands and reorganizes the software quality characteristics and subcharacteristics, and introduces two new perspectives: quality in use and quality in context. Quality in use refers to the degree to which a software product satisfies the needs and goals of its users in a specific situation, while quality in context refers to the degree to which a software product adapts to different environments and conditions.