AngularJS to Angular: Why You Should Make the Switch

Come December 2021 and AngularJS will no longer be a formally supported JavaScript framework. Of course, this news has sent a lot of people scrambling for answers and looking for alternates. Often this search leads them to Angular, which is quite the hit in the market and as an increasing number of experts continue to recommend switching from AngularJS to Angular, some companies and teams continue to have some doubts about taking that leap. But worry not, for we are here to help ease that decision for you. We will start with a quick overview: A JavaScript framework, AngularJS is an open-source framework that is used to develop dynamic web apps. On the other hand, Angular is a Typescript-based framework that is much more suited for the development of large-scale applications.

Now, time to take a look at some of Angular’s benefits as compared to AngularJS.

1. Better performance: While AngularJS is a terrific framework in its own right, the truth is that it can suffer lags in case of high processing on the client-side server. This is not a problem with Angular, which is said to offer 5x better performance.
2. Maintainability: Since Angular gets a component-based architecture, it means they continue to be independent while co-existing. This makes the job of introducing and applying updates much easier for developers since they can do it one by one for every component instead of going at it all at once.
3. Faster development time: Unlike its predecessor, Angular gets its own CLI and tools such as IDEs and text editors, which significantly accelerates the timeline for the development of the app. With a faster development time, companies can also reduce the time taken to bring the product to the market. Not only that, but this also helps them save a substantial amount of financial resources, i.e. costs associated with the execution of the development project.

Folks, as you can see, there are plenty of reasons why it is a very good idea to transition from AngularJS to Angular sooner than later. However, if you are still on the fence about it, here are some tips to help ease the migration process for you.

1. Take it one step at a time: Since both frameworks, i.e. Angular and AngularJS can co-exist within the same app, one doesn’t have to necessarily transition the entire app at once. Do it step by step to ease the process and also minimize the downtime for your app.
2. Stick to the guide: Angular gets its extensive guide meant to assist developers and companies making the switch to this framework. So, be sure to not only adapt the best practices shared in the guide. And if you need more help, there is always the global Angular community you can turn to for help.
3. Switch to TypeScript first: As noted above, Angular is a Typescript framework, which means you will eventually have to switch to it as well. A good idea would be to integrate the Typescript compiler before you kick off the transition process.

As you can see folks, those are some of the reasons why upgrading AngularJS to Angular comes so highly recommended now. Plus, it may also help you to know that more and more modern developers are better skilled with Angular than they are with the archaic AngularJS. So now you know why it is indeed a good idea to switch to Angular ASAP.