Those who have worked with mobile applications have used SQLite or Core Data engines as databases, two options that are totally valid. Still, in many cases, they do not meet all the requirements that developers are looking for. In the development world, new things are coming up that could help and facilitate our daily work.
Realm is a database engine designed to be used in the development of mobile applications for both Android and iOS systems. This system allows us to create relational databases in a simple way.
On their website, you can find all the necessary documentation to start working with it, examples, videos, and many support communities on the Internet that have accepted it as their daily basis database.
Some aspects of this database could be improved, but that is a different story because now you will be introduced to some interesting points in its favor:
1. Good Support Community and Documents
The Realm Community is growing because they can find a lot of documentation and support from Google, Realm, and different users. The guys at Realm worked really hard on their documentation, which is very straightforward. You will easily find your answer if you have a question on a related feature.
2. Manages 5 Different Languages
An advantage of this database is that it can be used in five different programming languages (Java for Android systems, Objective-C as with Swift for iOS, JavaScript, and Xamarin). In addition, the system incorporates the use of transactions, and it should be mentioned that it works as an Object-Relational Mapping (ORM). It means that it is unnecessary to use the SQL language to query the database, but everything is done by means of objects, both obtaining query results. When updating or inserting data, it can be done through objects.
3. Easy to Install and Easy to Use
Being a full-fledged cross-platform mobile database, Realm was created to become the ultimate solution for storing data both performance and efficiency-wise. What really sets it apart is that you can handle all the work with a couple of lines of code. Realm is very easy to install and more responsive compared to SQLite and its ORM alternatives like ORMLite or Greendao.
What really impressed me is that Realm is not only very well built but also very fast. Surprisingly way faster than CoreData and SQLite! Below there are two graphics that show what I am talking about.
4. Realm Browser
There are a few solutions to explore your Core Data database independently, but many of those are either expensive or not working. A few of them: SQLite Professional, Core Data Editor, Core Data Pro, etc. The amazing engineers at Realm thought about this too. They provided a utility called Realm Browser. It allows you to easily explore and edit your information.
5. Cross-platform
The Realm Mobile Database is cross-platform, supporting both iOS and Android, and the Realm Object Server is ready to run on your servers or on your favorite cloud.
6. Free and Other Features
Some of you might not be surprised that Realm is free. Also, its database has encryption, Reactive architecture, Offline-first functionality, and Safe threading.
Conclusion
The Realm database is a good choice if you need a really fast and easy-to-use solution for storing and processing data in a mobile application. Implementing a database now takes a lot less time than it used to with SQLite or others Databases.
Try Realm in your projects but remember, “With great power comes great responsibility” – Uncle Ben. Have a nice day!
