This is not an in-depth review of these products but a very quick first impression.

Etch: A promise fulfilled

The first downloadable version of Etch (a pre-alpa) was released this past week to early investors, and after only a few months of development, I am impressed. I can definitely see this becoming my tool for the future. The speed of the builder and the 100% access to all the HTML make it a winner in my book. You can still get a lot done even with minimal UI and no advanced elements (tabs, accordion, etc.). Is it ready for live sites? Yes, but only if they are very basic or you are well-versed in PHP query writing. The most significant limitation and risk is the desire to make everything core WP. The limitations of the Gutenberg editor and the risk that it could be abandoned at a moment’s notice, given Matt’s volatility. Kevin and his team have done a great job, and I suspect that by the time version 1 is released (this is an early alpha), many will be moving in this direction. My etch playground.

Bricks 2: Getting better with age

Another alpha that was released this week is Bricks Builder 2. This has been promised for quite some time, but I think the delays have helped it further mature as a reliable builder. I have done some testing, and it seems snappier, and the UI improvements are terrific. Many of the new features will seem familiar to Advanced Themer (AT) users, as Thomas has incorporated several of the missing items that AT had previously provided, such as the visual grid builder. Automatic CSS is still working, as is the BricksExtras. Speaking of Advanced Themer and the other plugins in the Bricks ecosystem, depending on how integrated they are, they have a lot of work ahead of them to make their tools V2 compatible. The upside is that the users must keep current, as backward compatibility will be too difficult to maintain. Not only will this mean potentially faster innovation, but it should also keep the foundation more secure.

The Verdict

While it’s too early to make a definitive judgment, Bricks is expected to continue thriving as a top-tier builder, especially for professionals. Etch, on the other hand, has the potential to attract agencies and solo professionals, particularly if it achieves its goal of a unified platform with e-commerce capabilities within the next two years (Kevin’s stated goals). Given its current development trajectory, this transition might occur sooner than anticipated.