Say Goodbye to XML: Embrace Jetpack Compose Today!

Android development with Kotlin
2 min readJan 2, 2025

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New frameworks and tools are coming regularly in Android development, but there are some innovations that bring a “revolution.” Jetpack Compose is a revolutionary framework that makes Android UI development easy and powerful. Let us understand what it is, why and when it should be used, and also see a small example of it.

What is Jetpack Compose?

Jetpack Compose is a modern toolkit that helps in creating declarative UI for Android apps. Its goal is to develop UI:

Simplify: Fewer lines of code in powerful UI.

Flexible: Themes and styles can be implemented easily.

Fast Development: Features like real-time preview and hot-reloading.

You can say goodbye to XML and Views and write UI directly in Kotlin using Compose.

Why use Jetpack Compose?

Now the next question that comes to our mind is why should we compose a jetpack?

There are several reasons to use Jetpack Compose:

Declarative Approach: You build the UI according to the state, which is easy to maintain.

Less Boilerplate Code: No need for XML and View Binding.

Real-Time UI Previews: You can see a preview of your UI in Android Studio without launching the app.

Integration with Jetpack Libraries: Compose seamlessly works with Jetpack libraries like Navigation, LiveData, and ViewModel.

When should it be used?

You can start Jetpack Compose using your tab when:

Starting a New Project: If you are creating a new app, Compose is a great choice.

Want Modernization in Existing App: It is possible to use Compose in existing projects by mixing it with XML.

Requirement of Dynamic UI: Building state-driven UI is very easy in Compose.

Faster Development Required: Compose tools and simplicity to boost your development speed.

Let’s look at a basic example that shows how simple and beautiful Jetpack Compose is:

import androidx.compose.material.*
import androidx.compose.runtime.Composable
import androidx.compose.ui.tooling.preview.Preview

@Composable
fun HelloWorld() {
Text(text = "Hello, World!", style = MaterialTheme.typography.h4)
}

@Preview
@Composable
fun PreviewHelloWorld() {
HelloWorld()
}

The only text that is composable in this code is “Hello, World!” Is visible. With this, you can easily start your Jetpack Compose journey.

Conclusion

Jetpack Compose is a game-changer for Android development. If you’re still new to XML and imperative approaches, it’s worth giving Compose a try. This will boost your productivity and make app development modern and efficient.

If you liked this article, please comment and share your thoughts and how you use Jetpack Compose in your journey!

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Thanks for reading…

Happy Coding!

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