Vercel has come up with a minor release 13.4 of its React framework, Next.js. This new release brings stability to the App Router, introduces experimental server actions, and also upgrades the Turbopack JavaScript bundler from alpha to beta status. Google, Meta, and more than 2,600 individual developers in addition to the core team at Vercel contributed to the release.
The Next.js development team describes this as a “next-generation” framework as the stabilization of the App Router signifies its move. The App Router is the core of Next.js, and its integration with other components like data fetching is also pivotal. The new app/ directory was introduced in Version 13.0 as a result of the layout RFC in beta.
With the latest release, App Router is now considered stable with a completely revamped architecture based on React Server Components. This architectural change allowed the development team to remove Next.js-specific APIs that were initially created to extend the React primitives. The new App Router now supports customisation of the global shared layout, eliminating the need to use a custom _app file.
Turbopack, the JavaScript bundler based on Rust, was launched as alpha in Next.js 13.0 and is now available in its first beta version. This bundler aims to replace its well-known predecessor webpack and is much faster. According to the development team, even though it is still not comparable to webpack and Next.js, it has gained some additional features in the beta phase.
The team plans to concentrate on bug fixes and stability in this phase. The beta version can be used in Next.js 13.4 by using next dev –turbo. The development team has provided all other information in a blog post.
