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+---
+id: 2019-06-04-hello-reason-react-native
+title: Hello Reason React Native
+---
+
+Today is a big day for the ReasonML community as we are releasing the fruits of
+a long effort started about 3 months ago.
+
+As more and more people were starting to use ReasonML on production apps using
+React Native, we wanted to make the BuckleScript bindings for React Native,
+known has `bs-react-native`, more accessible. This would have involved several
+breaking changes in order to simplify some APIs that have been designed with a
+high level of security in mind, but at some costs. The cost of being harder to
+start with (for newcomers to ReasonML) as well as the cost in terms of code size
+and performance.
+
+While some of us were thinking about some simplifications, some others, involved
+in Reason React incoming changes, directly started a new approach for this
+bindings, following
+[the zero-cost approach offered by reason-react 0.7.0](https://reasonml.github.io/reason-react/blog/2019/04/10/react-hooks).
+
+[CCA](https://www.cca.io) started this effort on what is now know as the new
+`reason-react-native` bindings, that eliminates a huge part of the additional
+JavaScript code produced by the bindings.
+
+## Zero-cost
+
+By zero-cost, we means zero additional cost. The JavaScript code BuckleScript
+produces using this bindings will most of the time directly hit React Native
+JavaScript code without creating an unnecessary abstraction above it 🙌.
+
+Here are some random examples:
+
+- [`bs-react-native` `View`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/bs-react-native/src/components/ViewProps.bs.js)
+  vs
+  [`reason-react-native` `View`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/reason-react-native/src/components/View.bs.js)
+- [`bs-react-native` `Style`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/bs-react-native/src/style.bs.js)
+  vs
+  [`reason-react-native` `Style`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/reason-react-native/src/apis/Style.bs.js)
+- [`bs-react-native` `Platform`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/bs-react-native/src/platform.bs.js)
+  vs
+  [`reason-react-native` `Platform`](https://github.com/reasonml-community/bs-react-native/blob/958cd4e3a5ffa303304a0b2404cd53b5f49e649f/reason-react-native/src/apis/Platform.bs.js)
+
+Some modules are even empty or with some minor `require()` that can be
+themselves almost empty and easily removed by some JavaScript bundlers.
+
+How cool is that?
+
+## But why`reason-react-native` ?
+
+`bs-react-native` already had multiple breaking changes in the past and we
+didn't really want to offer a poor experience by creating a new release with
+tons of changes that won't be easy to codemod (or would require much more work
+from us).
+
+On top of that, `reason-react` latest release already added an important
+breaking change with
+[JSX 3](https://reasonml.github.io/reason-react/docs/en/jsx).
+
+That's why we had this idea about offering an easy and smooth transition by
+offering 2 packages to say goodbye to `bs-react-native` without pain.
+
+- `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat`
+- `reason-react-native`
+
+## Wait, what is `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat` ?
+
+`bs-react-native` is using JSX 2 so in order to use it with JSX 3 we would have
+to create an additional layer on top of the current bindings to offer both JSX 2
+and 3 bindings. And since we wanted to do away with some current APIs of
+`bs-react-native` we started to think about a new approach.
+
+We knew that we wanted to:
+
+- offer to `bs-react-native` users a migration plan, so they can start very
+  easily to use JSX 3 and new `reason-react` (so they can use hooks),
+- offer new `reason-react-native` bindings, more accessible and with a zero cost
+  approach.
+- offer a smooth transition between these two packages so people can slowly
+  upgrade their codebase without having to make an insane PR that switches from
+  one to the other.
+
+We don't want your co-workers to hate you with a PR that comes directly from
+hell 😅.
+
+That's where we thought about offering `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat`. It's a
+package that has the same APIs `bs-react-native` has but that uses
+`reason-react-native` under the hood.
+
+**This means you will have to make a migration from JSX 2 to 3**. That's the
+only thing you will have to do, then with a single change from `bs-react-native`
+with `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat` in your `bs-dependencies` you will be ready
+to use hooks and directly benefit of (almost) zero-cost bindings!
+
+And since we care about you and don't want you to upgrade from JSX 2 to 3 by
+hand, we got you covered with a script made with love to help you with that.
+
+[You will find all the required instructions to migrate from `bs-react-native` to `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat` in our documentation](/reason-react-native/en/docs/migration/jsx3/).
+
+## tl;dr
+
+- `bs-react-native` has now entered a frozen state and won't receive any upgrade
+- `bs-react-native-jsx3-compat` allows you to use existing code based on
+  `bs-react-native` with `reason-react` 0.7.0 and JSX 3
+- `reason-react-native` package contains the new bindings for React Native, that
+  offers more accessible APIs and that is almost zero-cost
+- [We offer you an easy and smooth migration plan so you can start using `reason-react-native` and slowly say bye to `bs-react-native`](/reason-react-native/en/docs/migration/jsx3/).
+
+## Thanks
+
+This required effort has been keeping us busy for weeks and wouldn't have been
+possible without the following people:
+
+- CCA team and especially @cknitt for leading us to the right direction for the
+  new zero-cost bindings and all the contributions that come with this move
+- @sgny for all his contributions to the new bindings
+- @MoOx for leading the effort, the compat layer and the new website you are
+  seeing here
+- @bloodyowl for his magical
+  [reason-react-compat](https://github.com/bloodyowl/reason-react-compat) layer
+  and
+  [the alternate JSX 3 upgrade path](https://bloodyowl.github.io/blog/2019-04-19-an-alternative-migration-path-for-reason-react/)
+  that goes with it
+- all the people that helped us on Discord and GitHub in various code reviews
+  and improvements like the react native template (thanks @dawee)
+
+## What's next?
+
+Now that `reason-react-native` is ready to be used and that our migration plan
+is usable, we will probably be focused on documentation as lots of APIs and
+Components need to be documented. We really want to offer the best developer
+experience possible and that's definitely part of it.