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What's New in React 18: Guiding to React 18 New Features

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05th Sep, 2023
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    What's New in React 18: Guiding to React 18 New Features

    React is a front-end JavaScript library that develops creative UI interfaces with different components. It keeps a constant check on your updates and renders the essential changes. React helps developers debug their codes on a large scale. You can create only the view level of an application. Using React for the production level requires both npm and Nodejs installed on their system.

    Here, we will discuss what's new in react 18 in detail. You can refer to React JS learning path for more references and expert guidance. 

    React Js is a popular language among coders, and it holds around 40% of the shares of web development technology today. Its use case is extended to huge web applications that can update the data without undergoing the loading effect. It is, in short, a simple and scalable language to work. 

    Get a deeper understanding of the React by clicking here how to learn React JS.

    What's New in React 18?

    React has launched its latest version, named React 18. In contrast with the React 17 features, the newest version has distinctive functionalities to overcome the stumbling blocks included in the previous version. 

    React 18 has got some of the best functional dependencies designed with a vision to boost performance and make things easier for the developers.

    It is used to design creative APIs and render HTML files, in contrast with a vast collection of libraries of experts and authors to give considerable inputs to build you up as an outshining developer. The developers can easily showcase their creative abilities online with a web development certificate online.

    React 18 New Features

    Heading on to the modifications that come with the react 18 concurrent modes, there's a thorough list of all these latest features accompanying their detailed description. Here is a complete list of the react 18 new features. 

    1. Concurrent React

    It is the most useful feature added to the react 18 features list, from solving a highly problematic concurrency issue. The concurrent react is a virtual element that eases the developers to have multiple instances of their UI, all at the same time.

    Being a virtual assistant here means that the feature is not visible but coordinates with the backend processes to make it happen. It is a drastic change in React's rendering model, and hence, the developers must be familiar with how the Concurrent React works.

    The reusable state is the handy feature that comes along the way with the Concurrent react. It can discard some UI sections and use them again after rolling to the previous model. 

    However, you can use this feature with an upcoming component named <OffScreen> which will further carry on the process. 

    2. Improvement in Automatic Batching

    React has an in-built batching feature that groups all the state updates through event handlers. It saves the files from undergoing an unnecessary rendering process. So, in addition to this, React 18 has an improvised form of Batching called React 18 Automatic Batching that batches all the state updates through createRoot.

    The background of the updates is not necessary, and the process involves functions such as timeout and intervals, asynchronous applications, event handlers, and batch state updates.

    The code snippet depicts a significant difference between the React 17 and the React 18 versions. This feature will help you save a lot of time and memory alongside. 

    3. New Start Transition API to Keep Your App Responsive

    Transition is a new feature introduced in the React 18's feature list. The developers can set a priority list based on the updates happening frequently. The essential updates occur with direct contacts such as a click, type, press, and other functions. These updates are carried out instantly as per the developer's requests. 

    Transition can be used in two ways 

    State Transition: It starts the transition when no opening hook is available. 

    User transition: It is used when a hook is already available and starts the transition update. The function saves a value to keep a check at the pending state. 

    4. New Suspense SSR, Architectural Improvements

    React suspense is a feature that allows the developers to keep an eye on the rendering components till the process continues. It has a fallback feature which is then displayed. With the latest React version, this feature can be combined with the transition API. It prevents the content from being replaced and even delays the rendering schedule to reduce the loading effect. 

    The react suspense is of great use as it offers a peaceful loading state till the time the user is experiencing a network clash.

    5. New APIs/Hooks startTransition(), useTransition(), useDeferredValue()

    React has some predefined hooks to perform a specific task as per the developer's request. Some of the latest introduced react hooks are as follows- 

    • startTransition()- It is an API used to determine the availability of a particular transition. This API refers to the state update that the developers want to operate. The updates wrapped up in the startTransition API are considered non-urgent updates. They can be overridden by urgent updates such as keypress, click, etc. A code snippet depicting the use case of the startTransition() API is shown below. 
    • useTransition()- It is used to create new state updates with priorities lower than the existing ones. It returns both the transition state and a function to initiate the start transition API. The use case of the useTransition() API is figured out below. 

    • useDeferredValue()- It is a hook that takes a value as a parameter and creates a duplicate copy of the same value. The new reference defers to an update that is more urgent than the previous one. Once the urgent updates are compiled, the new value is further rendered. We have an example shown below. 

    6. IE11 No Longer Supported

    React 18 does not support the IE11 feature and the developers switching to react 18 could no longer use it. So, if your project still works on the IE11 quality, you must not upgrade it to the latest version. 

    How to Upgrade to React 18?

    Upgrading the React 17 to its latest version entitles you to play around with the react 18 features, adding enhanced functionalities to your tasks. However, upgrading your react js is just a few steps away. It goes with some basic steps that can be performed within a few seconds.

    • Installing the latest version- Developers must follow this step to install the newest version for the react 18.
    • To install the latest version, type - npm install react@rc react-dom@rc 
    • However, if you are using yarn, you must perform this operation- yarn add react@rc react-dom@rc 

    Once performed, the processor starts installing the related dependencies and other libraries to make it functional. 

    The upgraded version will provide you access to the newly introduced functionalities to build up a strong and attractive application using the react js. 

    Update Client Rendering APIs 

    Users installing the react 18 for the first time are more likely to encounter warnings as ReactDOM.render feature no more exists in the latest update. The application process continues to function as per the last updated mode.

    For example 

    The image below depicts a use case of both the before and after-effects of the changes made in the render feature.

     

    The render function in React 17 is replaced with the createRoot feature through which the developers can render their HTML pages efficiently.

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    Update Server Rendering 

    Server rendering deals with rendering the HTML files generated from a specific react component and sending them to the client. It works on the client-server architecture and represents a bridge between the two sides. 

    The old streaming APIs are deprecated, and the developers can use the latest introduced within the react 18 new features. 

    Refer to React JS learning path Knowledgehut to get a detailed explanation of react js from scratch and be an advanced developer with our expert mentors. 

    Conclusion

    The knowledgeHut is the prime source for all the developers seeking out precise and detailed guidance along with the core concepts. This article emphasizes more what's new in react 18.

    Additionally, we have shared a comprehensive guide to upgrading your react to the latest react version. The react 18 features will enhance your working experience and help you make the most of it. 

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    1How do I upgrade React to 18?

    To upgrade the React version, you should change it within the package.lock.json file. Later on, install the required dependencies and restart it. 

    2What is the latest version of React?

    React 18 is the latest version. Although React 17 is the most stable version as of now. The latest version still has some of the components that may disrupt the process but is rare. 

    3What are the top features of React 18?

    React 18 has introduced numerous features such as an Introduction to a new root API, advanced automatic batching, responsiveness using start transition API, suspense SSR, and other distinct functionalities.

    4How do you use React 18's automatic batching?

    To use the react 18's automatic batching, the index.js file must use the createRoot() API for further processing. The event listeners then render the react batches. Three other state updates are synced with the even listener to carry out the process. 

    Profile

    Bala Krishna Ragala

    Blog Author

    Bala Krishna Ragala, Head of Engineering at upGrad, is a seasoned writer and captivating storyteller. With a background in EdTech, E-commerce, and LXP, he excels in building B2C and B2B products at scale. With over 15 years of experience in the industry, Bala has held key roles as CTO/Co-Founder at O2Labs and Head of Business (Web Technologies) at Zeolearn LLC. His passion for learning, sharing, and teaching is evident through his extensive training and mentoring endeavors, where he has delivered over 80 online and 50+ onsite trainings. Bala's strengths as a trainer lie in his extensive knowledge of software applications, excellent communication skills, and engaging presentation style.

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