In order to duplicate an array in JavaScript: which of the following is faster to use?
###Slice method
var dup_array = original_array.slice();
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It depends on the length of the array. If the array length is <= 1,000,000, the slice
and concat
methods are taking approximately the same time. But when you give a wider range, the concat
method wins.
For example, try this code:
var original_array = [];
for(var i = 0; i < 10000000; i ++) {
original_array.push( Math.floor(Math.random() * 1000000 + 1));
}
function a1() {
var dup = [];
var start = Date.now();
dup = original_array.slice();
var end = Date.now();
console.log('slice method takes ' + (end - start) + ' ms');
}
function a2() {
var dup = [];
var start = Date.now();
dup = original_array.concat([]);
var end = Date.now();
console.log('concat method takes ' + (end - start) + ' ms');
}
function a3() {
var dup = [];
var start = Date.now();
for(var i = 0; i < original_array.length; i ++) {
dup.push(original_array[i]);
}
var end = Date.now();
console.log('for loop with push method takes ' + (end - start) + ' ms');
}
function a4() {
var dup = [];
var start = Date.now();
for(var i = 0; i < original_array.length; i ++) {
dup[i] = original_array[i];
}
var end = Date.now();
console.log('for loop with = method takes ' + (end - start) + ' ms');
}
function a5() {
var dup = new Array(original_array.length)
var start = Date.now();
for(var i = 0; i < original_array.length; i ++) {
dup.push(original_array[i]);
}
var end = Date.now();
console.log('for loop with = method and array constructor takes ' + (end - start) + ' ms');
}
a1();
a2();
a3();
a4();
a5();
If you set the length of original_array to 1,000,000, the slice
method and concat
method are taking approximately the same time (3-4 ms, depending on the random numbers).
If you set the length of original_array to 10,000,000, then the slice
method takes over 60 ms and the concat
method takes over 20 ms.