Android: Benefits of DataStore over SharedPreferences

Question

The android Jetpack team recently released the DataStore library (still in alpha) as a way of saving simple data using two implementations:

1. Preference DataStore has similar functions to SharedPreferences and used to store simple key-value pairs..
2. Proto DataStore is used for storing custom data types and requires creating a schema.

Rather than use DataStore, why don't we use sharedPreferences for simple datatypes and Room for more complex storage.

What are the BENEFITS OF USING DATASTORE IN ANDROID OVER USING SHAREDPREFERNCES (for simple data) + ROOM (for complex data).

Answer 1

quoting after Florina Mutanescu

SharedPreferences comes with several drawbacks: a synchronous API that can appear safe to call on the UI thread, no mechanism for signaling errors, lack of transactional API, and more. DataStore is a replacement for SharedPreferences that addresses most of these shortcomings. DataStore includes a fully asynchronous API using Kotlin coroutines and Flow, handles data migration, guarantees data consistency, and handles data corruption.

Answer 2

SharedPreferences: SharedPreferences is a lightweight and straightforward key-value storage mechanism available in Android. It allows you to store and retrieve small amounts of primitive data types, such as booleans, integers, floats, and strings.

DataStore: Starting from Android Jetpack 11, Preferences DataStore is the recommended approach for managing app preferences. It leverages the Kotlin coroutines and Flow APIs to provide a more efficient and consistent data storage solution.

SharedPreferences vs. Preferences DataStore

Preferences DataStore outperforms SharedPreferences in terms of performance, especially when working with larger amounts of data. It uses a more efficient disk I/O strategy and leverages Kotlin coroutines and Flows to handle data updates asynchronously.

Type Safety SharedPreferences only supports primitive data types, requiring manual type conversions when working with more complex objects. On the other hand, Preferences DataStore provides type-safe APIs out of the box, making it easier to work with different data types.

Migrating Existing SharedPreferences If you’re migrating an app that already uses SharedPreferences, Preferences DataStore provides a convenient migration mechanism. You can use the SharedPreferencesMigration object to convert your existing SharedPreferences data into Preferences DataStore.

Source: https://medium.com/@humzakhalid94/simplifying-data-storage-in-android-sharedpreferences-and-preferences-datastore-e775825d8d0c

Answer 3

DataStore and SharedPreferences are both mechanisms for storing key-value pairs in Android, but they have some key differences in terms of functionality, use cases, and underlying implementation.

SharedPreference

1. SharedPreferences stores key-value pairs in XML files on the device.
2. Limited support for complex data types, mainly used for primitive types and strings.
3. Limited support for asynchronous operations. Reading and writing operations are typically synchronous.

DataStore

1. DataStore can store key-value pairs in two formats: Preferences DataStore (stores data asynchronously in XML files) and Proto DataStore (stores data using Protocol Buffers).
2. Supports complex data types and structured data through Protocol Buffers.
3. Supports asynchronous operations out of the box, making it suitable for use in modern Android app architectures that rely on coroutines.