We break down what’s new, what’s next, and what’s actually worth your time in the evolving React Native ecosystem. Expect a dose of humour and plenty of memes.
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Xcode 27 shipped without Simulator.app.
I found out by double-clicking an icon that wasn't there anymore.
expo-device-hub from @expo streams your sims and emulators into a browser tab. In the GIF, Codex builds an Expo game and plays it through the stream.
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𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲
➡️ Live iOS sim + Android emulator streams you can tap, swipe and type into
➡️ Boot/shutdown plus appearance, Liquid Glass and text size toggles
➡️ CPU, memory and network graphs next to the device
Catch: pre-1.0, no docs page yet, and no physical iPhone streaming. SDK 58 (works on 57+).
Link in comments.
#ReactNative #Expo #Xcode #iOS #Android #DevTools
Simulator.app going missing is exactly the sort of Xcode drama we write up in The React Native Rewind 👇
Join The React Native Rewind: trnrw.com/YLLZyR
expo-device-hub: github.com/expo/expo-device-…
Bit of news.
We've been sneaking AI agent stuff onto this account for weeks.
It's now moved out and got its own place: @TheAgenticRwd
The Agentic Rewind is our weekly newsletter on AI agents and dev tooling that actually ships, minus the hype.
Follow over there if that's your thing. This account goes back to being wall-to-wall React Native.
Want it in your inbox every week? Join The Agentic Rewind 👇
trnrw.com/arw-x
I asked the agent to test the photo zoom name tag.
It pinched the simulator, read the overlay, and said it worked.
I did not touch the trackpad.
Argent by Software Mansion (@swmansion) is an agentic toolkit (CLI + MCP + skills) that lets coding agents drive the iOS Simulator, then debug and profile the app. The GIF is their official showcase: Cursor Agent taps a gallery photo, pinch-zooms, and confirms the "Oskar - ENGINEER" name tag.
🧵
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵?
iOS Simulator focused for now, so Android is not the headline. You still need Xcode and a booted sim, and giving an agent simulator control means watching what it taps. It complements tools like agent-device rather than replacing a full cross-platform device cloud.
Link in comments.
#AIAgents #Argent #ReactNative #iOS #SoftwareMansion #AgenticRewind
Correction: Argent isn't iOS-only. It also works with Android emulators and real devices (thanks @blazejkustra_ for the nudge).
The real catch is the usual one: you're handing an agent the controls, so keep an eye on what it taps.
Excited to be in London for another day-another conference type of game haha
Come say hi, dude!
@ReactAdvanced & @TheTechLeadConf
You open a sheet.
Then a sheet on that sheet.
On Android the backdrop used to get darker twice. Screens 5 alpha (FormSheet stacking) from @swmansion fixes that.
🧵
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲
➡️ Android FormSheet stacking with cascaded dismiss + steady dim
➡️ Stack v5 header item props and scroll minimisation
➡️ iOS 26.1+ UITab API, custom tab icons, SPM
Catch: still 5.0.0-alpha.4 (14 Oct). Pin it and test before production.
Link in comments.
#ReactNative #ReactNativeScreens #Navigation #Android #iOS #OpenSource
Screens 5 FormSheet stacking is the sort of navigation fix we write up in The React Native Rewind 👇
Join The React Native Rewind: trnrw.com/YLLZyR
react-native-screens 5 alpha: github.com/software-mansion/…
Agents that can pinch-zoom your simulator are a big part of what we cover in The Agentic Rewind 👇
Join The Agentic Rewind: trnrw.com/arw-x
Argent: argent.swmansion.com/
Skia could draw anything.
Except a row that wraps without you doing the maths by hand.
react-native-skia-layout by Ifeoluwa King brings Yoga Flexbox to Skia primitives. Separate from the Skia 3.0 Graphite post.
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𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲
➡️ FlexCanvas and FlexLayout over Yoga
➡️ Layout-aware shapes, text, images, SVG
➡️ gap, wrap, justifyContent, alignItems, absolute
Catch: RN 0.76+ New Arch, no Expo Go/web, no animated layout props yet, early package.
Link in comments.
#ReactNative #Skia #Yoga #Flexbox #Graphics #OpenSource
Yoga on a Skia canvas is the sort of graphics deep-dive we write up in The React Native Rewind 👇
Join The React Native Rewind: trnrw.com/YLLZyR
react-native-skia-layout: github.com/ifeoluwak/react-n…
I was away from the Mac.
Codex still updated the Remotion copy, rendered the MP4, and dropped it in Slack.
Codex in the ChatGPT mobile app (OpenAI preview) connects your phone to a Mac where Codex is running, so you can start work, steer it, or approve a step without sitting at the desk. The GIF is from OpenAI's launch video: phone thread on the left, finished "Updated Launch Video.mp4" landing in the Project-Launch Slack channel on the right.
🧵
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵?
Preview on iOS and Android. The Mac (or remote host) has to stay awake and online. Windows phone pairing was still "coming soon" at launch. Your files and credentials stay on the host, which is good, but it also means a locked laptop is a stopped agent.
Link in comments.
#AIAgents #Codex #OpenAI #ChatGPT #DevTools #AgenticRewind
Steering a coding agent from your phone is exactly the sort of thing we cover in The Agentic Rewind 👇
Join The Agentic Rewind: trnrw.com/arw-x
Codex from anywhere: openai.com/index/work-with-c…