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  1. Stackups
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  4. Cross Platform Mobile Development
  5. J2ObjC vs NativeScript

J2ObjC vs NativeScript

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

J2ObjC
J2ObjC
Stacks8
Followers20
Votes6
GitHub Stars6.0K
Forks991
NativeScript
NativeScript
Stacks533
Followers1.1K
Votes516
GitHub Stars25.3K
Forks1.7K

J2ObjC vs NativeScript: What are the differences?

Developers describe J2ObjC as "Java to iOS Objective-C translation tool and runtime used by Google Inbox to share 70% of its code across Android, iOS, and Web". J2ObjC is an open-source command-line tool from Google that translates Java code to Objective-C for the iOS (iPhone/iPad) platform. This tool enables Java code to be part of an iOS application's build, as no editing of the generated files is necessary. The goal is to write an app's non-UI code (such as data access, or application logic) in Java, which is then shared by web apps (using GWT), Android apps, and iOS apps. On the other hand, NativeScript is detailed as "Build truly native apps with JavaScript". NativeScript enables developers to build native apps for iOS, Android and Windows Universal while sharing the application code across the platforms. When building the application UI, developers use our libraries, which abstract the differences between the native platforms.

J2ObjC and NativeScript can be categorized as "Cross-Platform Mobile Development" tools.

"Backed by Google" is the top reason why over 3 developers like J2ObjC, while over 55 developers mention "Access to the entire native api" as the leading cause for choosing NativeScript.

J2ObjC and NativeScript are both open source tools. It seems that NativeScript with 17.2K GitHub stars and 1.27K forks on GitHub has more adoption than J2ObjC with 5.47K GitHub stars and 771 GitHub forks.

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Advice on J2ObjC, NativeScript

Gabor
Gabor

CTO at momento.

Aug 23, 2021

Decided

As a startup, we need the maximum flexibility and the ability to reach our customers in a more suitable way. So a hybrid application approach is the best because it allows you to develop a cross-platform application in a unique codebase. The choice behind Ionic is Angular, I think that angular is the best framework to develop a complex application that needs a lot of service interaction, its modularity forces you (the developer) to write the code in the correct way, so it can be maintainable and reusable.

209k views209k
Comments
Lucas
Lucas

Jan 6, 2023

Needs adviceoniOSiOSVisual Studio CodeVisual Studio CodeTypeScriptTypeScript

Hello,

We're just brainstorming for the moment and we have a few questions.

We have an idea for an app that we want to develop, here are the prerequisites:

  1. cross-platform (iOS, Android, and website);

  2. as easy to maintain as possible / well documented / widely used;

  3. Visual Studio Code and Copilot compatible;

  4. Text to speech;

  5. Speech recognition;

  6. Running in background (screen off with TTS and speech recognition);

  7. could be using TypeScript;

  8. Monetized through ad and in-App payment for premium version;

  9. Display on lock screen (Android only I guess)

So what would you recommend?

I've been trying to review the options available, and I've considered:

  • NativeScript

  • React Native

  • Flutter

  • Any other?

Thanks in advance for your help, and I'm open to any comments.

371k views371k
Comments
audaine
audaine

Feb 16, 2022

Review

As the previous commentor said, Next.js or React Native + Expo may be a better option. There's also the options of AssemblyScript + React/Next.js, or NativeScript and Ionic, both of which give you mature ecosystems of tools and close-to-native experiences. Flutter, you're likely to have the same experiences you had with Swift and Kotlin. Flutter requires higher separation of concerns between platforms, doesn't have nearly the third-party support of any of the other options, and is fairly large in binary size. Still, it's a growing system and in the future it may actually outcompete the other options when it has a large enough ecosystem.

31k views31k
Comments

Detailed Comparison

J2ObjC
J2ObjC
NativeScript
NativeScript

J2ObjC is an open-source command-line tool from Google that translates Java code to Objective-C for the iOS (iPhone/iPad) platform. This tool enables Java code to be part of an iOS application's build, as no editing of the generated files is necessary. The goal is to write an app's non-UI code (such as data access, or application logic) in Java, which is then shared by web apps (using GWT), Android apps, and iOS apps.

NativeScript enables developers to build native apps for iOS, Android and Windows Universal while sharing the application code across the platforms. When building the application UI, developers use our libraries, which abstract the differences between the native platforms.

-
100% Access to Native Platform API;NativeScript is free of charge as an open source project;Code with JavaScript. Style with CSS;Cross-platform UI abstractions;Shared business logic and data models
Statistics
GitHub Stars
6.0K
GitHub Stars
25.3K
GitHub Forks
991
GitHub Forks
1.7K
Stacks
8
Stacks
533
Followers
20
Followers
1.1K
Votes
6
Votes
516
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 4
    Backed by Google
  • 1
    Made it possible to quickly port a hardware driver
  • 1
    Access to existing Java libraries
Pros
  • 75
    Access to the entire native api
  • 47
    Support for native ios and android libraries
  • 46
    Angular 2.0 support
  • 46
    Support for javascript libraries
  • 44
    Native ux and performance
Cons
  • 5
    Lack of promotion
  • 1
    Slower Performance compared to competitors
Integrations
Java
Java
Objective-C
Objective-C
No integrations available

What are some alternatives to J2ObjC, NativeScript?

Ionic

Ionic

Free and open source, Ionic offers a library of mobile and desktop-optimized HTML, CSS and JS components for building highly interactive apps. Use with Angular, React, Vue, or plain JavaScript.

Flutter

Flutter

Flutter is a mobile app SDK to help developers and designers build modern mobile apps for iOS and Android.

React Native

React Native

React Native enables you to build world-class application experiences on native platforms using a consistent developer experience based on JavaScript and React. The focus of React Native is on developer efficiency across all the platforms you care about - learn once, write anywhere. Facebook uses React Native in multiple production apps and will continue investing in React Native.

Xamarin

Xamarin

Xamarin’s Mono-based products enable .NET developers to use their existing code, libraries and tools (including Visual Studio*), as well as skills in .NET and the C# programming language, to create mobile applications for the industry’s most widely-used mobile devices, including Android-based smartphones and tablets, iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

Apache Cordova

Apache Cordova

Apache Cordova is a set of device APIs that allow a mobile app developer to access native device function such as the camera or accelerometer from JavaScript. Combined with a UI framework such as jQuery Mobile or Dojo Mobile or Sencha Touch, this allows a smartphone app to be developed with just HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

Framework7

Framework7

It is a free and open source mobile HTML framework to develop hybrid mobile apps or web apps with iOS native look and feel. All you need to make it work is a simple HTML layout and attached framework's CSS and JS files.

Qt

Qt

Qt, a leading cross-platform application and UI framework. With Qt, you can develop applications once and deploy to leading desktop, embedded & mobile targets.

PhoneGap

PhoneGap

PhoneGap is a web platform that exposes native mobile device apis and data to JavaScript. PhoneGap is a distribution of Apache Cordova. PhoneGap allows you to use standard web technologies such as HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript for cross-platform development, avoiding each mobile platforms' native development language. Applications execute within wrappers targeted to each platform, and rely on standards-compliant API bindings to access each device's sensors, data, and network status.

Expo

Expo

It is a framework and a platform for universal React applications. It is a set of tools and services built around React Native and native platforms that help you develop, build, deploy, and quickly iterate on iOS, Android, and web apps.

Vue Native

Vue Native

Vue Native is a mobile framework to build truly native mobile app using Vue.js. Its is designed to connect React Native and Vue.js. Vue Native is a wrapper around React Native APIs, which allows you to use Vue.js and compose rich mobile User Interface.

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