Pardon my ignorance but why does glb have fewer network requests compared to a gltf? When I export from Blender and use gltf loader for either formats, I only ever export/load 1 file because the blender gltf exporter only exports the 1 file regardless of whether it’s a glb or a gltf. I did apply the texture onto the model in Blender so that might be the case?
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The newest version of the Blender exporter has three export options, from most-to-least efficient:
- Binary (.glb)
- One file, one network request, and binary payload.
- Separate (.gltf, .bin, + textures)
- Multiple files, multiple network requests, and binary payload.
- Embedded (.gltf)
- One file, one network request, and Data URI payload (adds 20-30% to filesize)
There are special cases where separating assets can be a good idea (e.g. if multiple models share the same texture). But in general, the binary (GLB) form is most efficient. There is no advantage to a single embedded .gltf file I’m aware of, except that it’s easy to edit by hand.
Note that all of the formats contain a JSON header, but this is limited to defining structure and materials — the heavy vertex, animation, and texture data is not JSON.
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Ahhh, it all makes sense now. I’ve read – many times-- that glb has everything packed together as well but I couldn’t see the point of having both formats. But now I know…
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