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Java 14 offers a new feature called Records, helping to create javabeans.
I've been using Kotlin for a couple of times, and of course, Java Records remind me Data Classes.
Are they completely similar? Or are there fundamental differences between them apart from the languages syntaxes?
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Answer: Kotlin provides a special type of class called data class, which is usually used for objects that act as a store for data properties and has no business logic or member functions. It provides a lot of advantages with reduced boilerplate code.
As a quick refresher, Kotlin is a modern, statically typed language that compiles down for use on the JVM. It's often used wherever you'd reach for Java, including Android apps and backend servers (using Java Spring or Kotlin's own Ktor).
A data class is a class that only contains state and does not perform any operation. The advantage of using data classes instead of regular classes is that Kotlin gives us an immense amount of self-generated code.
Like enum , record is also a special class type in Java. It is intended to be used in places where a class is created only to act as plain data carrier. The important difference between class and record is that a record aims to eliminate all the boilerplate code needed to set and get the data from instance.
This is a great article about all those differences.
In summary:
equals, hashCode, toString
o.name, while Java uses o.name())Kotlin's data classes support many other little things:
| data class (Kotlin) | record (Java) |
|---|---|
copy method for easier object creation |
no copy method |
variables can be var or val
|
variables can only be final
|
| can inherit from other non-data classes | no inheritance |
| can define non-constructor mutable variables | can define only static variables |
Both are great for reducing the code bloat.
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