Kotlin is a great fit for developing Android applications, bringing all of the advantages of a modern language to the Android platform without introducing any new restrictions. Kotlin is a new programming language from Jet Brains and supported by Google for mobile development. Kotlin is a platform independent language. It also provide type safety as an example, the type system helps you avoid null pointer exceptions. It is general purpose programming language with type inference. It is focused on interoperability, safety, clarity, and tooling support. The prime reason for this adoption was its modernity – in terms of its power, flexibility, and democratic approach.

KOTLIN VS JAVA

• One major difference between Java and Kotlin is that the latter has no provision for checked exceptions. Therefore, there is no need to catch or declare any exceptions.
• One of the most infuriating issues concerning Java for developers is the NullPointerExceptions. Java lets developers assign a null value to any variable. However, if they try to use an object reference that has a null value, there comes the NullPointerException!
• Comparing a Java class with an equivalent Kotlin class demonstrates the conciseness of Kotlin code. For performing the same operation that the Java class does, a Kotlin class necessitates for less code.
• Comparing a Java class with an equivalent Kotlin class demonstrates the conciseness of Kotlin code. For performing the same operation that the Java class does, a Kotlin class necessitates for less code.
• Kotlin allows developers to extend a class with new functionality via extension functions. These functions, although available in other programming languages like C#, aren’t available in Java.
• Variables that are accessed in the body of the function are known as closures. Making use of higher-order functions can impose several runtime penalties. Every function in Kotlin is an objectand it captures a closure.
• Encapsulation is essential in any program for achieving a desirable level of maintainability.
• Before an object can be cast in Java, it is mandatory to check type. This is also true in scenarios where it’s obvious to cast the object.

Interoperability

• Interoperability is Kotlin’s core purpose. From the beginning, the project’s intention has been to use existing knowledge and expertise to make every library available to Kotlin programmers. Developers can simply write modules in Kotlin that work flawlessly within existing Java code. By emitting the Bytecode, a Kotlin compiler allows the two languages to work in unison in the same project.

• Kotlin’s type system has inbuilt null safety. The infamous NullPointerException is largely responsible for Android development mistakes. Android relies on null to represent the absence of a value, but null can easily destroy an app. Kotlin solves this problem by incorporating inherent null safety. This addition saves developers from writing extra code to work around the issue.

• Before generics came into play, raw types were used quite frequently. Raw types allow for backward compatibility, but raw types can throw a CastClassException and the error will occur during execution and not the compiling stage. Kotlin does not allow raw types, and as a result, produces a more type-safe code.

• The checked exception feature in Java can be problematic. Checked exceptions are when the compiler forces the caller of a function to catch or (re-throw) an exception. The fact is, checked exceptions are often unnecessary and cause empty catch blocks. Non-existent checked exceptions are annoying for developers because empty catch blocks force developers to weed through the code to identify a nonexistent exception. As a solution, Kotlin removes them entirely, which minimizes verbosity and improves type-safety.

• Since the beginning of 2018, roughly 1.5 million developers wrote in Kotlin code and halfway through 2019, that number has nearly doubled. With colossal brands starting to use Kotlin, support from JetBrains and Google, and an almost global attachment to the programming language, it’s pretty safe to say that Kotlin will be around for a while.
• Kotlin is quickly proving itself to be a superior programming language for mobile app development and presents developers with a wealth of opportunity to experiment with modern programming. Overall, Kotlin is setting a new standard for what a programming language should be able to accomplish.