Benchmark: Init array of strings

Tests:

Strings.split
let a = 'a b c d e f g h i j k l m'.split(' ')
Array init
let a = ['a','b','c','d','e','f','g','h','i','j','k','l','m']

Rendered benchmark preparation results:

Suite status: <idle, ready to run>

Previous results

Test case name	Result
Strings.split
Array init

Fastest: N/A

Slowest: N/A

Latest run results:

Run details: (Test run date: 2 months ago)

User agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:126.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/126.0

Browser/OS: Firefox 126 on Linux

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Test name	Executions per second
Strings.split	5401947.0 Ops/sec
Array init	250117392.0 Ops/sec

Autogenerated LLM Summary (model gpt-4o-mini, generated 2 months ago):

LLMs can make mistakes. Check important info.

In this benchmark definition, the focus is on comparing two different methods of initializing an array of strings in JavaScript: using the `String.split()` method and directly initializing a JavaScript array. Let's break down the benchmark, analyze the test cases, and consider the pros and cons of each approach.

### Benchmark Overview
- **Name**: Init array of strings
- **Description**: The benchmark compares two approaches for creating an array of strings: using `String.split` versus directly initializing an array.

### Individual Test Cases
1. **Test Case 1: Strings.split**
   - **Benchmark Definition**: 
     ```javascript
     let a = 'a b c d e f g h i j k l m'.split(' ');
     ```
   - **Description**: This code snippet uses the `split()` method of the `String` object to divide a string based on spaces, creating an array containing individual string elements.

2. **Test Case 2: Array init**
   - **Benchmark Definition**:
     ```javascript
     let a = ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm'];
     ```
   - **Description**: This code snippet initializes an array directly with the specified string elements.

### Performance Results
According to the benchmark results, the `Array init` method executed approximately 250 million times per second, while the `Strings.split` method executed around 5.4 million times per second. This indicates a significant performance advantage for the array initialization method.

### Pros and Cons of Each Approach

#### Strings.split
- **Pros**:
  - **Dynamic**: This method can be beneficial when the string to be split or the delimiter may vary at runtime.
  - **Convenient**: It simplifies the process of converting a space-separated string into an array without needing to explicitly list each element.
  
- **Cons**:
  - **Performance**: As demonstrated in the benchmarks, using `split()` is substantially slower compared to direct array initialization. This is primarily because it involves additional overhead related to string parsing and method calls.
  - **Memory Overhead**: There may be some additional memory overhead from internally creating the new string instances during the split operation.

#### Array init
- **Pros**:
  - **Performance**: Directly initializing the array is incredibly fast due to minimal overhead—it's a straightforward instantiation with pre-defined values.
  - **Clarity**: The intent of the code is evident; the developer can easily see which elements are included in the array.
  
- **Cons**:
  - **Static**: The array initialization is static; any change in the number of strings or their values requires modifying the code directly, which can lead to less flexibility in certain situations.
  - **Verbosity**: For larger datasets or dynamic content, manually defining each element can become cumbersome and error-prone.

### Other Considerations and Alternatives
- **Dynamic Data**: For scenarios where data is acquired dynamically (e.g., from user input, an API response, etc.), using `String.split()` can be a better fit despite its performance trade-off.
- **Array.from()**: Consider using `Array.from()` with a mapping function to convert strings into arrays when using more complex transformations, which can be more versatile in specific scenarios.
- **Template Literals**: If the strings are known at compile time, using template literals with `Array` can allow for more concise syntax, although this will not necessarily improve performance.

Overall, the choice between these methods largely depends on the specific requirements of the project, including data dynamics, performance requirements, and code clarity. For performance-critical applications, direct array initialization is preferable.

Related benchmarks:

Init array of strings (version: 0)

Strings.split vs array init

Comparing performance of: Strings.split vs Array init

Created: 2 months ago by: Registered User

Jump to the latest result

Strings.split

Array init

Suite status: <idle, ready to run>

Experimental features:

Fastest: N/A

Slowest: N/A

Autogenerated LLM Summary (model gpt-4o-mini, generated 2 months ago):