Okay, so today I wanted to see what all the fuss was about with these two JavaScript bundlers, Giron and Bolt. I’d heard some chatter, but I really wanted to get my hands dirty and see how they actually performed. So, I decided to put them head-to-head.
Setting Up the Test
First things first, I needed a project to test with. I grabbed a medium-sized React project I’d been working on – nothing crazy, but big enough to give these bundlers a decent workout. It had a bunch of components, some external libraries, the usual stuff.
Then, I installed both Giron and Bolt. The installation process for both was pretty straightforward, just your typical npm install commands. Nothing to write home about there.
Round 1: Giron
I started with Giron. I ran the build command, and… it chugged along for a bit. I watched the terminal, waiting, waiting… Finally, it spit out the bundled files. Honestly, it felt a little slow. I mean, it wasn’t terrible, but it definitely wasn’t lightning-fast. I made a mental note to check the final bundle size later.
Round 2: Bolt
Next up, Bolt. I fired off the build command, and… wow, that was noticeably faster! It zipped through the process, and I had my bundled files in a fraction of the time. I was already impressed. This Bolt thing seemed pretty slick.
Checking the Bundle Sizes
Now for the important part – how big were the bundles? I dug into the output folders and checked the file sizes. Giron’s bundle was… well, it was hefty. It had packed everything in there, but it felt a bit bloated.
Bolt’s bundle, on the other hand, was significantly smaller. Like, noticeably smaller. This was a big win for Bolt, especially if you’re concerned about website loading times (and who isn’t?).
The Verdict (For Now)
From my little experiment, I gotta say, Bolt came out on top. The build speed was much faster, and the bundle size was smaller. For my project at least it is way better.
I only tested one project. Maybe I’ll get to test others one day. But at this point, I’m leaning towards Bolt for my future projects. It just felt smoother and more efficient. I need more time to mess around, but that’s my initial take. Hope this helps someone out there!
