Java byte array vs. ByteBuffer

This is a quick note comparing arrays and (direct / indirect) ByteBuffer. So basically, Buffer is an abstraction using which to prepare data for channel-based I/O. ByteBuffer is a subtype offering byte-oriented operations.

The ByteBuffer API can be implemented by either wrapping a byte array (non-direct ByteBuffer) or allocating from off-heap memory (direct ByteBuffer).

Here’s the easiest way for me to understand ByteBuffer: 1) we introduced a way to operate on off-heap memory called DirectByteBuffer; 2) to unify its handling with on-heap byte arrays we introduced an abstraction called ByteBuffer.

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