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Expo vs Qt: What are the differences?
Introduction
In this article, we will explore the key differences between Expo and Qt. Expo and Qt are two different frameworks used for creating mobile and desktop applications, respectively. Understanding their differences can help developers make an informed decision on which framework to use for their projects.
Deployment Platforms: Expo is primarily focused on developing mobile applications and is specifically designed for iOS and Android platforms. On the other hand, Qt is a cross-platform development framework that supports multiple platforms including desktop, mobile, embedded, and more. Qt's versatility allows developers to target a wider range of devices and operating systems.
Programming Languages: Expo is mainly based on JavaScript and uses React Native as the underlying framework. This makes it easier for web developers to transition into mobile app development. Meanwhile, Qt primarily uses C++ for development, making it more suitable for developers with a strong background in C++ or who require low-level optimizations and performance.
User Interface Design: Expo relies heavily on a declarative UI style, where developers define the UI components using JSX and React Native styles. This approach simplifies the UI design process and promotes code reusability. In contrast, Qt provides a more traditional approach to UI design, allowing developers to create interfaces using a combination of Qt Widgets or QML (Qt Meta-Object Language), which offer more control and flexibility while sacrificing some simplicity.
Native Access and APIs: Expo provides a comprehensive set of pre-built APIs and modules that simplify access to device functionalities, such as camera, geolocation, sensors, and more. However, Expo apps are executed within a managed runtime environment, which restricts direct access to all native APIs and capabilities. On the other hand, Qt offers direct access to device APIs and allows developers to utilize platform-specific features more extensively, enabling greater control and optimization options.
Community and Ecosystem: Expo has a thriving open-source community and a large number of community-built components and libraries available. This active community ensures a wide range of resources and support for Expo developers. Qt also has a strong developer community, but it has been traditionally more focused on desktop application development. However, Qt's growing popularity in mobile and embedded development has also expanded its community and ecosystem offerings.
Development Tools and IDEs: Expo provides a comprehensive development toolset, including Expo CLI, Expo client app, and a web-based development environment known as Expo DevTools. These tools enable developers to quickly develop, test, and preview their apps without the need for complex setup or device emulators. Qt, on the other hand, provides its own IDE called Qt Creator, which offers powerful development and debugging features specifically tailored for Qt applications. Qt Creator also integrates well with other popular IDEs, providing flexibility for developers.
In summary, Expo and Qt differ in terms of deployment platforms, programming languages, user interface design, native access and APIs, community and ecosystem, and development tools. Understanding these differences can help developers choose the right framework based on their specific requirements and expertise.
Hello guys, I am new here. So, if I posted without specific guidelines, please ignore.
Basically, I am an iOS developer and developing native apps for the last three years. Recently, I started learning React Native to develop apps for both platforms. If anyone out there knows any useful resources that will become a better react native developer.
#newbie
Well, the first resource I would recommend you is my upcoming book by Packt Publishing, "Professional React Native", but it's due late January next year :) . Now jokes aside (the book's real by the way :) ), the easiest way to build a iOS/Android/Web app with React Native is to do: npm install -g expo-cli expo init some-project cd some-project expo eject
You might have heard of Expo, but trust me, stay away from it. Expo highest value is that it's an already pre-configured 3 platforms environment, but if you don't eject then you're vendor-locked to what Expo has to offer in iOS and Android, which is very poor compared to going full React Native on these platforms, they can't even handle Google Sign In properly and by the way, even if your app is 10 lines of code your app size will be over 40 MB if you don't eject, yep it's that bad, plus the performance is regular and the loading times slow, not to mention that you're stuck with their build service which the free tier makes you wait for hours for a free build slot. It's important to note that when ejecting you don't lose the Web, you simply do expo start --web to start your dev environment and expo build:web to build a static website that you can serve with any web server. Regarding state management, don't bother with "lifting state up" philosophies mixed with Context API to manage your state, lifting state is a great pattern and helps your codebase, Context is great to avoid prop-drilling, but NEVER mix them to achieve app-wide state management, for that, simply go for Redux or MobX, the hype is all about Redux, but I consider MobX far better in many aspects. However, as you're getting new into this I would recommend you start with Redux AND PLEASE grab yourself npm install @manaflair/redux-batch so that you can batch updates and don't bring your app to a crawl. Forget that "connect HOC" thing with React-Redux, don't bother for a second with it, go with Hooks and useSelector and useDispatch and the likes, it will make your code SO much cleaner and smaller. Adopt clean and new Hooks philosophy, avoid writing class components as much as possible and write function components augmented with Hooks.
Pros of Expo
- Free15
- Hot Reload13
- Easy to learn9
- Common ios and android app setup9
- Open Source6
- Streamlined6
- Builds into a React Native app5
- PWA supported2
- Plugins for web use with Next.js1
Pros of Qt
- High Performance17
- Declarative, easy and flexible UI13
- Cross platform12
- Performance12
- Fast prototyping9
- Easiest integration with C++8
- Up to date framework8
- Python7
- Multiple license including Open Source and Commercial6
- Safe 2D Renderer6
- Great Community Support5
- HW Accelerated UI4
- Game Engine like UI system4
- No history of broken compatibility with a major version3
- JIT and QML Compiler3
- True cross-platform framework with native code compile3
- Reliable for industrial use3
- Pure C++3
- Been using it since the 90s - runs anywhere does it all3
- Open source2
- Easy Integrating to DX and OpenGL and Vulkan2
- From high to low level coding2
- Learning Curve1
- Great mobile support with Felgo add-on1
- Native looking GUI1
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Cons of Expo
Cons of Qt
- Paid5
- C++ is not so productive4
- Lack of community support2
- Lack of libraries1
- Not detailed documentation1
