Adding jar file in libs vs. adding dependencies in gradle

Question

We are using projectlombok in our android app. Our approach to use this library is - We have added lombok.jar to the android studio - inside libs folder and using compile files('libs/lombok.jar')

However, on the project home page of projectlombok the approach explained to add it is like below,

dependencies {
    compileOnly 'org.projectlombok:lombok:1.16.18'
}

Is there any performance or app-size impact of one approach over the other?

Answer 1

One of the biggest differences is the amount of work required to upgrade to a new version of the library. If you use Gradle, then all it takes is a small edit to your build.gradle file. The other option requires downloading the JAR file manually and copying it to the libs directory.

For JAR-only libraries, this difference is pretty small. However, for libraries which also include Android resources, a JAR file is insufficient. You have to build a AAR file instead and bring it into your build process. Gradle manages all of this for you.