Magento 2

## What is Magento 2?

In November 2015, Magento announced the release of Magento 2.0, promising a ‘new era of commerce innovation’.

The upgraded platform comes with a rewrite of the code base and an open, flexible architecture to allow for easier customisation.

Improved performance, enterprise-level scalability and the promise of a platform that’s easier to maintain are just some of the benefits of upgrading to Magento 2.

## Magento 2 Features & Benefits

The additional features and improvements in Magento 2 are designed to allow businesses to grow their online presence without the need to embark on a complex and expensive migration to another platform.

Magento 2’s upgraded modular code base allows flexible customisation and enterprise-level scalability to support your online growth.

The key features of Magento 2 include:

• Improved performance to decrease page load times
• Streamlined checkout process
• Flexible architecture to allow easier development and customisation
• Cost-effective site maintenance
• Enterprise-level scalability
• Intuitive admin and efficient business user tools
• UX enhancements that improve engagement, conversion rates and sales
• Improved product data import capabilities that are 4x faster than before
• Modern, responsive themes and layouts
• Out-of-the-box integration with key payment gateways such as PayPal, Braintree, Authorize.Net, WorldPay and CyberSource
• Data migration tool to transfer existing Magento 1.x store data to Magento 2.0

## What’s the Magento 2 release date?

Magento 2 was released on general availability in November 2015, so if you’ve not upgraded already, you should be thinking about it now.

## What’s involved in upgrading to Magento 2?

The core upgrade from Magento 1.x to 2.0 is expected to be around a 20% overhead of the original build.

However, the real time and effort comes in upgrading your design, extensions and custom changes to the Magento core, as well as the third-party integrations and back office connections that make an upgrade resemble a complete rewrite of your existing website.

## When should you upgrade to Magento 2?

2016 has given Magento 2 a year to stabilise and allow time for plugins to become available.

We believe that every client is different, so it’s important to take a look at your existing Magento site and determine what your current pain points are.

Some third-party extensions don’t yet have a Magento 2 version available, so this is also something to consider when looking at upgrade options.

At Cohesion Digital, we evaluate the performance of your site alongside your aims and objectives to determine which upgrade is right for you and produce a timeline for migration that fits with the needs of your business.

Get in touch with our Magento experts today to discuss your upgrade options.