React Native 0.73 Debugging Improvements and Stable Symlinks
Article Summary
React Native 0.73 just dropped with a game-changing shift: the team is finally killing off Flipper and the legacy bridge. This is the biggest architectural pivot since the New Architecture announcement.
The React Native team released version 0.73 with major debugging overhauls and the next pillar of their New Architecture: Bridgeless Mode. This release marks a clear direction away from legacy debugging tools while adding production-ready features like stable symlink support and Android 14 compatibility.
Key Takeaways
- Hermes now captures console.log history before debugger connects, like browsers do
- Bridgeless Mode ships experimentally, fully removing the old bridge architecture
- Kotlin replaces Java as recommended Android language (36% smaller template files)
- Flipper integration deprecated, will be removed in next release
- Stable symlink support enables proper monorepo setups with Fast Refresh
React Native 0.73 deprecates Flipper and legacy debugging while shipping Bridgeless Mode, moving the framework decisively toward its New Architecture future.
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What This Article Covers
React Native developers had trouble debugging consistently across different platforms. They couldn't see console logs from before the debugger connected, which made it hard to diagnose problems that happened during app startup.
The React Native and Hermes teams added background console.log capture to Hermes. It collects logs automatically and sends them to the Console tab when you connect a debugger. This works the same way as web browser debugging and supports Flipper, Chrome DevTools, and the new experimental debugger.
React Native 0.73 includes 2,259 commits from 68 contributors. The new debugging tools work across all supported debuggers and don't break existing development workflows.
This page summarizes “React Native 0.73 Debugging Improvements and Stable Symlinks” by React Native Blog, published Dec 6, 2023. All credit for the original work goes to the authors.
