Welcome to the world of Google's Dart 3 and the latest Flutter 3.10!

Amidst the ever-changing scenario of mobile app development services, these updates are set to redefine the game. Released on May 10th, 2023, they bring a wave of enhancements for mobile, web, and desktop applications. From sleek designs to macOS/iOS improvements, there's a lot to dive into.

But that's not all; there's Impeller for iOS, Dart 3's WebAssembly (WASM) compilation, speed-boosting web upgrades, and enhanced DevTools for easier profiling. Material 3 widgets get a facelift, and there's even support for SLSA Level 1 for security.

Stick around as we unpack these updates and features, giving you a glimpse of what's in store with Dart 3 and Flutter 3.10. Let’s begin by introducing the latest version of Flutter!

What is the latest version of Flutter?

Flutter 3.10 was recently released, and it includes numerous improvements for mobile and web app development. It brought new widgets, frameworks, security advancements,  performance improvements, updates to existing widgets, and much more. 

One of the most noteworthy Flutter updates is the improved Material Design Widgets that come with the Material 3 and Navigation updates. Additionally, we will see the introduction of Impeller for improved graphics processing and stability, as well as updated Pickers and Bottom Sheet Widgets that have been improved for functionality. There are also improvements for web and mobile apps, APIs, and other features. Let’s dig deeper into the details!

Flutter 3.10 Highlights‍

Better DevTools for profiling

In the latest Flutter 3.10 release, you'll find several improvements to the development tools. One standout feature is the new Diff tool, which allows you to compare how your app uses memory before and after specific interactions, helping you understand their impact.

Furthermore, exploring your app's memory is now more accessible through the console. The DevTools interface has received a new look with the addition of Material 3 widgets, making it more user-friendly. Additionally, the old trace viewer has been replaced by Perfetto, an open-source program that excels in handling large datasets. With Perfetto, you can pin threads of interest, select multiple timeline events, and utilize SQL queries to retrieve specific timeline data. These enhancements streamline the workflow of every top Flutter app development company.

Enhanced Version of Flutter for Web

If you've used Flutter to build Windows applications, you'll be glad to know that significant improvements have been made to Flutter's web app development loading time. CanvasKit, the largest Flutter web component, has shrunk to one-third of its original size.

You can also remove unnecessary fonts to reduce overall weight. With Flutter 3.10, you may now simply integrate pure HTML components into the application. Using the well-known Dart code fragment shader capability, programmers can create visually stunning effects.

• Navigation Drawer

The Flutter 3.10 release includes improved iOS/macOS support. This enables users to use Apple's Spell-checking feature within editable text widgets and includes a new checkbox and radio button design that matches the Cupertino aesthetics. There are also many animation advancements specific to Apple platforms.

• New Material 3 Widgets

The most recent version of Flutter 3.10 includes improved support for Material 3. It enables you to create color schemes based on either a base color or an image. Significant improvements can also be found in several widgets in Material Design components, such as DropdownMenu, TabBar, NavigationDrawer, SnackBar, and many others.

• Refining Cupertino Animations

While considering Apple devices, the updated Flutter version now allows wireless debugging directly to iPhones and iPads. This functionality, however, was previously only available in Xcode.

Production-ready Impeller for iOS

With the release of the Flutter 3.10 version, Skia has been interchanged by Impeller. It has surpassed OpenGL as the primary rendering engine on iOS. This new rendering engine improves animation performance and eliminates the vexing shader compilation issues that cause bad animations and a terrible visual experience.

To achieve this result, Impeller uses a tessellation algorithm, which eliminates the need for shared compilation during graphics rendering.

Impeller takes advantage of the cutting-edge capabilities of next-generation GPUs to smoothly generate various forms and colours on the screen while maintaining a high frame rate. It has been meticulously designed from the ground up to meet the needs of Flutter app development services in particular.

Impeller is the default rendering engine in all iOS apps created with Flutter 3.10. Impeller for Android preview is also planned for future releases, and efforts are being made in this direction.

Framework support for SLSA and Security 

Protecting software from malicious attacks or threats is necessary for every developer. The Flutter framework security enhancement provides the top-notch security experience with Supply Chain Levels for Software Artifacts (SLSA) Level 1. This approves the implementation of various security features that include: 

• Flutter Build Script:

The build script enables automated builds on reliable build platforms. This reduces artifact tampering and improves supply chain security.

• Multi-party approval

To prevent unauthorized changes between source code and artifact generation, Flutter release workflows have been boosted with multi-engineer approvals and auditable log records. These updates ensure the integrity of the code and increase transparency in the release process.

• Provenance

Flutter beta and stable releases now include provenance information, ensuring that framework release artifacts are developed from trusted sources and involve the expected elements. On the SDK archive, provenance links are provided for verification, increasing transparency and confidence in the release process.

Updates for Web Apps

Flutter Web's latest updates bring significant improvements. It now uses the ImageDecoder API in compatible browsers, making image decoding twice as fast and eliminating performance issues caused by images. 

Additionally, the new web app lifecycles feature allows better control over your Flutter web app's startup process, letting you display a splash screen, loading indicator, or a plain HTML landing page before your app loads. These enhancements enhance user experience and performance.

What is the latest version of Dart?

Dart 3, Flutter's most popular programming language, gets a fantastic new feature in version Flutter 3.10.

The elimination of non-null-safe code in Dart 3 ensures a completely secure and error-free experience in this 100% safe language and eliminates a common hazard of nullable languages.

Apart from that, Dart 3 also includes several language enhancements, such as the addition of Patterns. This functionality makes working with structured data simple. 

(String, int) userInfo(Map<String, dynamic> json)

{

return (json[‘name’] as String, json[‘height’] as int);

}

There is no requirement in the preceding example to create the class or to encapsulate various values within a collection.

Furthermore, new class modifiers such as sealed class and interface class provide enhanced capabilities and modify the switched statement, resulting in a systematic breakdown of structured patterns.

Explore Flutter 3.10's potential along with Dart 3

With frequent upgrades, the Google team and the entire Flutter community have done a great job of easing and improving the Flutter app development process. This has opened up a plethora of opportunities for developers.

It brings a delightful fusion of improved features, boosted performance, and refreshed widgets, enabling developers to create visually appealing, lightning-fast, and rock-solid apps. Whether it's the enticing Material Design Widgets or the smooth Navigation updates, Flutter 3.10 makes the process of developing high-quality apps easier. 

Developers can create apps with unprecedented reliability and speed by embracing stability improvements and leveraging Impeller's graphics prowess. With updated Pickers and Bottom Sheet Widgets in their arsenal, developers can create even more immersive user experiences.

Now is your chance to update your app according to the latest version of Flutter 3.10 and begin your mobile app development project.

Article source: https://medium.com/@marketing_96275/whats-new-in-google-s-dart-3-and-flutter-3-10-9bef482ab2b7