Analyzing the Resource Utilization of Lambda Functions on Mobile Devices: Case Studies on Kotlin and Swift

TL;DR

This paper investigates how Lambda functions affect resource consumption in mobile devices, revealing they add overhead without functional benefits, which has implications for energy efficiency in smartphone applications.

Contribution

It provides a comparative analysis of Lambda versus non-Lambda code structures on mobile resource usage, highlighting the overhead introduced by Lambda functions.

Findings

Lambda functions increase battery consumption on mobile devices.

Memory usage is higher with Lambda functions compared to equivalent code.

Execution time is longer when using Lambda functions on smartphones.

Abstract

With billions of smartphones in use globally, the daily time spent on these devices contributes significantly to overall electricity consumption. Given this scale, even minor reductions in smartphone power use could result in substantial energy savings. This study explores the impact of Lambda functions on resource consumption in mobile programming. While Lambda functions are known for enhancing code readability and conciseness, their use does not add to the functional capabilities of a programming language. Our research investigates the implications of using Lambda functions in terms of battery utilization, memory usage, and execution time compared to equivalent code structures without Lambda functions. Our findings reveal that Lambda functions impose a considerable resource overhead on mobile devices without offering additional functionalities.