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Angular Signals: Enhancing Change Detection and Performance

Auteur n°2 – Jonathan

By Jonathan Massa
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Summary – Modern Angular applications often suffer from overly global change detection, verbose RxJS code, and excessive CPU usage, hindering scalability and maintainability. Angular v17 introduces Signals, a native reactive API that, via writable, computed, and readonly signals, builds a precise dependency graph with lazy evaluation and memoization, reducing render times by 20–40% and CPU load by 30%.
Solution: progressively adopt Signals, restructure business state with these three signal types, and guide the migration with an expert audit to balance modularity and performance.

Angular v17 introduces Signals, a native reactive API that streamlines the management of dynamic state. By encapsulating a mutable value and automatically updating its dependencies, Signals effectively replace heavy constructs based on RxJS and Zone.js. This approach limits change detection to the affected components only, reduces boilerplate code for subscriptions, and improves maintainability.

With their intuitive syntax and built-in lazy evaluation and memoization mechanisms, they boost application performance. Swiss companies seeking scalable, modular solutions can thus adopt a leaner reactive management approach. This article explores how Signals work, their benefits, and real-world use cases.

Understanding Angular Signals and Use Cases

Angular Signals provide a lightweight, native reactive model for managing dynamic data. They partially replace RxJS and Zone.js by enabling automatic dependency updates.

Signals introduce a simple observable value capable of emitting <a href=

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By Jonathan

Technology Expert

PUBLISHED BY

Jonathan Massa

As a senior specialist in technology consulting, strategy, and delivery, Jonathan advises companies and organizations at both strategic and operational levels within value-creation and digital transformation programs focused on innovation and growth. With deep expertise in enterprise architecture, he guides our clients on software engineering and IT development matters, enabling them to deploy solutions that are truly aligned with their objectives.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions about Angular Signals

What tangible benefits does Angular Signals offer over RxJS and Zone.js?

Angular Signals enables more granular change detection by updating only dependent components, eliminates Zone.js overhead, and greatly reduces RxJS subscription boilerplate. With lazy evaluation and memoization, CPU performance improves (measured gains of 20-40%), and code maintenance becomes simpler with a native, easy-to-understand API.

How should you plan a gradual integration of Signals into an existing Angular project?

We recommend starting by identifying local state or simple forms and progressively replacing BehaviorSubjects with writable signals. Exposing readonly signals in services minimizes the impact on the presentation layer. Measuring gains at every step, maintaining unit tests, and keeping hybrid RxJS-Signals modules ensure a controlled transition without functional disruptions.

What risks and common mistakes should be avoided when migrating to Signals?

Common pitfalls include overly dense dependency graphs, misuse of computed signals for heavy, non-memoized computations, or directly mutating shared data without readonly signals. To mitigate risks, clearly structure writable, computed, and readonly signals, maintain a comprehensive test suite, and validate the impact of change detection adjustments on the user experience.

How do you measure the impact of Signals on an application's performance?

Measuring the impact involves tracking KPIs like average render time, CPU usage, and change detection cycle frequency. Use performance profiling (Chrome DevTools) and end-to-end benchmarks (Lighthouse, Sitespeed) before and after migration. Gains are typically observed on performance-intensive screens, with a notable reduction in unnecessary recalculations.

What is the role of writable, computed, and readonly signals in a modular architecture?

Writable signals define the source state - mutable and localized. Computed signals produce derived data, recalculating only when their dependencies change. Readonly signals serve as an observation interface without allowing external mutations. This separation promotes a modular architecture, ensures data integrity, and simplifies unit testing.

When should you opt for an RxJS-Signals hybrid rather than a full migration?

A hybrid approach is preferred when the application handles complex multi-event orchestration (WebSockets, concurrent streams) where RxJS is still more suitable. RxJS subscriptions can feed writable signals, combining orchestration power with the reactive simplicity of Signals. This progressive strategy lets you migrate modules one by one without immediately impacting the entire project.

How do you structure reactive state for complex forms using Signals?

For forms, each field becomes a writable signal, while computed signals calculate overall validity, error messages, or submission state. This approach partially replaces FormGroups for simple scenarios, offering declarative logic that's easy to test. Isolating validations in computed signals improves readability and maintainability.

Which criteria should be considered when deciding to adopt Angular Signals for a new project?

Evaluate project size and complexity, team expertise, and needs for fine-grained reactivity. For applications requiring targeted updates, scalable maintenance, and reduced boilerplate, Angular Signals are a suitable choice. Native integration, no external dependencies, and modularity also facilitate scaling.

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