1. Architecture Comparison: V8 Isolates vs Serverless Containers
Traditional Serverless functions spin up Node.js container environments with noticeable cold-start overheads (200ms–1000ms). Edge runtime uses V8 Isolates deployed directly across global CDN edge nodes, reducing cold starts down to zero milliseconds.
2. When to Use Edge Workers
Edge functions excel at geo-routing, personalization, A/B testing, authentication token checks, and fast HTML header rewrites.
3. Limitations to Consider
Edge environments restrict access to native Node.js APIs like fs and heavy native C++ binary addons. Choose standard Serverless containers for heavy PDF rendering or complex image generation.
