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React Native News

Oct 12, 2021· 47 min· 1.3K views·Watch on YouTube

Speakers

Łukasz, a software developer at Callstack, hosts Satya and Yannick on the React Native Show to review React Native core and community updates, including Windows, the new architecture, libraries, and Expo.

React Native 0.65 and Windows updates

The panel covers Hermes updates in React Native 0.65, including the Hades garbage collector, native Intl support, and compatibility with M1 Macs. They also discuss accessibility work and React Native Windows releasing alongside iOS and Android, with CodePush support, improved Hermes integration, and added APIs such as Pressable.

React Native’s multiplatform direction

The hosts recap recent React Native blog posts about preparing for iOS 15 and Android 12, expanding to more platforms, and plans for the second half of the year. They discuss React Native’s potential for desktop apps, including Facebook’s move from Electron to React Native for Messenger on macOS and Windows, which the panel says reduced memory requirements and improved performance.

The new architecture and React Native EU

Satya explains JSI, Fabric, and TurboModules, describing how they enable direct JavaScript and native interaction and support more responsive UI. Yannick says Facebook tested the architecture across more than 1,000 surfaces before completing its internal rollout. The panel also recaps React Native EU: nearly 10,000 registrants from more than 140 countries, 23 talks, and 24 speakers.

Libraries, contributions, and Expo

Satya outlines React Navigation 6, including Native Stack as its default navigation setup, while Yannick describes Re.Pack, a webpack-based alternative to Metro that supports multiple bundles and code splitting. The panel encourages practical contributions such as answering issue tracker questions and fixing documentation. They also cover Expo Development Client, config plugins, and cloud builds through EAS Build.

Takeaways

  • React Native 0.65 brings Hermes improvements, including a garbage collector designed to reduce pause times and native Intl support.
  • React Native Windows is aligning releases with iOS and Android and expanding compatibility with shared APIs and libraries.
  • JSI, Fabric, and TurboModules are intended to reduce bridge overhead and improve UI responsiveness; Facebook tested the architecture across more than 1,000 surfaces.
  • Re.Pack offers webpack configuration and code splitting for React Native apps, which can improve startup time for apps with large dynamically imported modules.
  • Contributing to open source can start with answering issues or correcting documentation, not only building features.

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