Software Alternatives & Startups

Underscore.js VS SocketRocket

Compare Underscore.js VS SocketRocket and see what are their differences

Underscore.js

Underscore is a utility-belt library for JavaScript that provides a lot of the functional...

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source
SocketRocket

A conforming Objective-C WebSocket client library.

Rating
0 reviews

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Underscore.js seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 24 times since March 2021.

social mentions
24 vs 0
Javascript UI Libraries popularity
97% vs 3%
alternatives listed
217 vs 25

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Underscore.js
SocketRocket
Website underscorejs.org github.com
Pricing
Open source
—
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Underscore.js 5 features
SocketRocket 0 features
  • Utility Functions
    Underscore.js provides a wealth of utility functions for common tasks such as map, reduce, filter, and more, making it easier to perform operations on arrays, objects, and collections.
  • Consistency
    The library offers a consistent API, which can make your code more readable and maintainable by providing a standard way to perform common programming tasks.
  • Lightweight
    Underscore.js is lightweight compared to full-featured libraries like Lodash, which can be a benefit if you're looking to minimize your application's footprint.
  • Browser Compatibility
    It supports a wide range of JavaScript environments, making it a good choice for projects that need to work across different browsers and Node.js.
  • Quick to Learn
    Easy to pick up for developers with even a basic understanding of JavaScript, due to its straightforward documentation and familiar function names.

Possible disadvantages

  • Performance
    Underscore.js may not offer the same level of performance optimizations as more modern utility libraries like Lodash, potentially leading to slower execution for some tasks.
  • Limited Functionality
    While it covers many basic utility functions, its feature set is not as extensive as Lodash or other similar libraries, which provide a broader range of capabilities.
  • Outdated
    With the advent of ECMAScript 5 and later versions, many of the functions provided by Underscore.js are now natively available in JavaScript, reducing its necessity.
  • No Modularization
    Underscore does not support modular builds in the same way Lodash does, meaning you might end up including the entire library even if you only need a few functions.
  • Community and Maintenance
    While still maintained, Underscore.js has seen less active development and contributions compared to newer libraries, which could impact its long-term viability and support.

No features have been listed yet.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Underscore.js
SocketRocket

Overall verdict

  • Underscore.js is a reasonable choice if you need a lightweight library for concise, functional programming helpers. While newer libraries or vanilla JavaScript have made some of its functions less essential, Underscore.js remains useful for its simplicity and comprehensive utility set.

Why this product is good

  • Underscore.js is a popular JavaScript library that provides a comprehensive set of utility functions for common programming tasks. It is valued for its simplicity and ease of integration, especially in projects that require functional programming patterns but do not need the full capabilities of larger libraries like Lodash. Underscore.js is lightweight and can significantly enhance productivity by offering functions for tasks such as object manipulation, array operations, and function binding, making code more readable and maintainable.

Recommended for

    Developers working on smaller projects or legacy codebases that require a reliable utility library with functional programming techniques. It’s also suitable for those who prefer a minimalistic approach and don’t require the extensive features of heavier alternatives.

Overall verdict

  • SocketRocket is a solid, battle-tested WebSocket client library for iOS/macOS, originally developed by Facebook/Square and widely used in production apps, though it has slowed in active development in recent years as many teams shift to newer alternatives or built-in URLSession WebSocket support.

Why this product is good

  • Mature and battle-tested library with years of production use in major apps
  • Implements the RFC 6455 WebSocket protocol thoroughly and correctly
  • Lightweight, focused solely on WebSocket functionality without unnecessary bloat
  • Good performance characteristics with low overhead for real-time communication
  • Open source with a permissive BSD license allowing flexible use
  • Large community adoption means plenty of Stack Overflow answers and third-party tutorials
  • Works well with Objective-C and can be bridged into Swift projects

Recommended for

  • iOS and macOS developers needing a reliable WebSocket client for older codebases
  • Projects already using Objective-C or maintaining legacy Swift/Obj-C interoperability
  • Teams needing a well-documented, proven WebSocket solution without adopting bleeding-edge dependencies
  • Apps requiring real-time features like chat, live notifications, or streaming data
  • Developers who prefer a dedicated WebSocket library over Apple's native URLSessionWebSocketTask for more granular control
  • Projects that cannot yet migrate to newer Swift-native WebSocket libraries due to dependency constraints

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Underscore.js 1 video + Add
SocketRocket 1 video + Add

Introduction to Underscore.JS

Review of the SocketRocket HD Surge Protector

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Underscore.js
SocketRocket
97% 97%
3% 3%
97% 97%
3% 3%
100% 100%
0% 0%
85% 85%
15% 15%

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Underscore.js 24 mentions
SocketRocket 0 mentions
  • JavaScript Awesome Package
    Underscore - JavaScript library that provides a whole mess of useful functional programming. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • JavaScript evolution: From Lodash and Underscore to vanilla
    Underscore was created by Jeremy Ashkenas (the creator of Backbone.js) in 2009 to provide a set of utility functions that JavaScript lacked at the time. It was also created to work with Backbone.js, but it slowly became a favorite among... - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
  • KlongPy: High-Performance Array Programming in Python
    There was a step-change improvement for me when I tried expressing some JS patterns via `underscore.js` instead of procedurally: eg: http://underscorejs.org/#each Thinking of something as `each | map | filter | sum` is waaay less buggy... - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago

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Tracking SocketRocket since Mar 2021.

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