debounce and conflate

Learn stream control with debounce and conflate.

debounce and conflate

debounce collapses rapid consecutive values in a flow. A value is emitted only when no new value arrives for a given duration; if one arrives, the previous is dropped.

conflate keeps only the latest value when the collector is slow, dropping intermediate ones. Use debounce for a search box that suggests as you type, and conflate for a fast sensor stream shown in the UI. Both reduce buffering needs on a flow.

debounce vs conflate

debounce is time based: it emits when no new value arrives for a given duration. It is useful for catching the pause when a user types, instead of processing every keystroke.

conflate is collector speed based. If the collector is busy with a value while the flow produces a new one, conflate skips the old and moves to the newest. Both boost performance but behave differently: debounce looks at time, conflate looks at the collector.

Exercise Collect a flow with conflate

Write flowOf(1, 2, 3).conflate().collect { value -> println("Value: $value") }. You will see each value printed.

Show example solution

fun main() = runBlocking {
    flowOf(1, 2, 3).conflate().collect { value ->
        println("Value: $value")
    }
}

Test yourself

Complete the debounce call
```
flow.____(100)
```
Show answer
```
flow.debounce(100)
```
What does conflate do?
- Cancels all values
- Keeps the latest value
- Stops the flow
- Waits for each value
Show answer

Keeps the latest value — conflate keeps the latest value for a slow collector.
Match debounce and conflate

debounce

Time based
conflate

Collector speed based
intermediate

Dropped
latest value

Kept

Next lesson: flatMapLatest

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