Mastering PHP Design Patterns

Prototype pattern

The Prototype design pattern allows us to effectively duplicate objects while minimizing the performance impacts of having to re-instantiate an object.

You may have heard of prototypal languages if you've worked with JavaScript. In such languages, you work by cloning prototypal objects to create new objects; in turn, there is a reduced cost for creating new objects.

We have, so far, extensively discussed the use of the __construct magic method, but we haven't touched on the __clone magic method. The __clone magic method is what's run before an object is cloned (if possible); the method cannot be called directly and takes no parameters.

You might find it useful to use the __clone method when using this design pattern; that said, ...