What´s new in Opencart 4? How does it affect e-commerce?

New features in Opencart 4.0 include a complete interface redesign, a new mobile responsive design that is optimized for mobile browsing and shopping experiences, a redesigned admin panel with a more intuitive interface for managing inventory of your store, shipping fees, customer service tickets, etc…

First you should know that Opencart 4.0 is a significant upgrade of this platform and with this version new features are added that will boost your business performance and sales.

Thinking about this last point, we propose in this article to talk about the new functions of Opencart 4.0 and how it will affect e-commerce companies.

At present, e-commerce is gradually developing after rapid growth during the pandemic; however, it continues to occupy a growing share of the global retail market.

Experts forecast that by the end of 2023, one in five retail transactions will take place online.

After the Covid-19 outbreak, the number of people shopping online for the first time increased substantially.

Obviously, the Covid-19 pandemic caused consumers to adjust their shopping habits, but it also forced companies to consider new sales channels, particularly e-commerce platforms. Many entrepreneurs find open source platforms like Magento, PrestaShop, Opencart, and WooCommerce to be a good first step in developing eCommerce or launching a business.

It is important that you know that the implementation of electronic commerce requires time, resources, money and knowledge.

Companies shaping their corporate strategy must decide the areas in which they will cultivate a do-it-yourself approach and in which they will look for more experienced partners and specialized suppliers.

We create Opencart’s extensions that take your online store to the next level.

Stand out from the competition and provide an exceptional shopping experience

Contact us today to revolutionize your  business.

Now, why OpenCart is a must-have eCommerce platform for your business? Why could it make you more money?

We note that OpenCart is a popular e-commerce platform that has been around for more than 10 years. We must also point out that it is one of the most stable e-commerce platforms that exist.

This is a great option for small and medium-sized businesses because it allows users to make changes without having to worry about losing customers or business.

At the same time, it can help grow your business by providing a wide range of features, including inventory management, payment processing, and shipping options.

It also has an integrated customer database with purchase history information that can be used for marketing purposes.

OpenCart includes a series of advantages that can facilitate the management of online stores. For example:

  • Multistore. Manage multiple stores from a single interface
  • Backup copies and data restoration. OpenCart allows you to backup and restore data
  • Multilingual. OpenCart is available in more than 40 languages
  • You can use extensions and themes to avoid writing lines of code and to be able to create your online store more easily
  • Scalable

What’s new in Opencart 4.0?

Opencart 4.0 has been released with new features and improvements that make it easier for users to run their business.

Some of the new features include a revamped dashboard, improved performance, a more intuitive interface, and faster checkout.

The OpenCart 4 vs OpenCart 3 database structure is similar, but there are some important differences to note. The biggest difference is that OpenCart 4 uses a NoSQL database, which means it doesn’t use the traditional relational model. This makes it more flexible and scalable, but it also means there are some tradeoffs in terms of performance and ease of use.

Another difference is that OpenCart 4 uses a schema-less database, which means that data can be stored in any format. This makes it easy to store and query data, but it also means there’s no strict structure to follow.

Finally, OpenCart 4 uses a document-oriented database, which means that data is stored in documents instead of tables. This makes it more scalable and flexible, but also means there’s no strict structure to follow.

The themes

One thing that should not be ignored in this review is its themes. Like any other open source platform, OpenCart gives users the freedom to customize it.

When it comes to customizing your theme on a granular level, you’ll need to know how to work with code. Despite some drawbacks compared to other hosted solutions, OpenCart’s excellent integration with CSS and HTML coding will ensure maximum customization and site performance.

Latest PHP Version

Opencart 4 is compatible with PHP 8.1 or higher. If you are using an older version of PHP on your server, you will need to upgrade to a newer version to be able to install OpenCart 4. Once you upgrade your PHP version, you can install OpenCart 4 and take advantage of its new features and improvements.

Why OpenCart 4 is Faster Using PHP 8?

OpenCart 4, combined with PHP 8, provides a significant improvement in page loading speed. PHP 8 has significant performance improvements, thanks to the optimization of the execution engine and the addition of Just-In-Time (JIT) compilation. This allows the code to execute more quickly, improving the efficiency and speed of operations.

In addition, PHP 8 introduces several optimizations that reduce page load time, including improvements to the typing system, named functions, and the ability to compile code at runtime. All of this contributes to OpenCart 4 being faster and more efficient once it runs on PHP 8.

In summary, OpenCart 4’s compatibility with PHP 8 allows users to enjoy higher load speeds, better performance, and a smoother user experience.

It is important to note that in order to get the performance benefits offered by PHP 8, users must ensure that their server is appropriately configured and that they are using the latest version of OpenCart.

New design changes.

The new design changes incorporate many new features and improvements that will help store owners better engage their customers and increase their conversion rates.

Three important improvements are offered in this area:

  1. Provides a better user experience for store owners;
  2. It offers an easy way to create, manage and publish content;
  3. It includes an improved search engine with suggestions in real time.

In the latest version of Opencart, they have included new features like responsive layout and more color options in theme settings.

Opencart 4 dashboard
Changes os Desing on Opencart 4 dashboard

It’s very similar to Opencart 3.0.3.8, isn’t it? Yes, you are right, the layout of the admin panel also looks familiar. So what’s changed and how can I identify what’s new and what’s been removed and modified?

Look closely and you’ll notice that the icons are more fluid now and there’s a new bell icon in the top right corner which means you now have a notification system in the store admin.

Rename the “admin” directory.

Rename the Opencart "admin" directory
Rename the Opencart “admin” directory

Due to a security issue, it is necessary to change the name of the administration directory of your website. Just give the url a new name and click the “Rename” button. In this way, the url to access the administration of your OpenCart store is modified

We create Opencart’s extensions that take your online store to the next level.

Stand out from the competition and provide an exceptional shopping experience

Contact us today to revolutionize your  business.

The return of the beloved CKeditor.

The old and beloved CKeditor is back. For those who didn’t like the note editor that was introduced in Opencart 2.x and kept its legacy till Opencart 3.x, don’t worry, the new version 4.0 has brought back the editor desired by the community.

ckeditor of Opencart 4
CKeditor

All third party extensions are now in an “extension” folder.

Third party modules and extensions now stay outside of the main Opencart folder. A new separate folder called “expansion” has been created which contains all third party modules. This is one of the biggest changes of Opencart 4.0 compared to the previous variants.

The OpenCart eCommerce platform has been around for over a decade. Over the years, it has undergone several major updates, the most recent being the release of OpenCart 4.0. Did you like it? Then use it….

2 thoughts on “What´s new in Opencart 4? How does it affect e-commerce?”

  1. As well as a new SEO URL scheme, new types of extensions, total ajax, GDPR, crone-, startup-manager, a new order editing form, a separate template for product thumb…

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