Unyson: A Theme Framework by Themefuse

In September of this year, Themefuse brought us the Unyson Theme Framework- a Drag & Drop WordPress framework. A framework definitely does gather some eyeballs, so I’ve written this post, to divulge some details about it.

At WisdmLabs, we have spent quite some time investigating and working with the theme framework. But unlike reviews, which end with a conclusion, where a summary is provided about the theme, I’m going to follow the reverse approach. I’ll provide you, my feedback about the theme and explain my reasons for it.

Here’s the gist about the Unyson theme framework: It is a great framework for theme developers, looking to build a premium theme. Of course I have my reasons to back this statement. Having worked on it, and with it, this has been the conclusion of my experience.

I’ll explain why.

The Unyson Theme Framework by Themefuse: An Introduction

The Unyson theme framework is available as a free plugin. To use the framework, you have to include the plugin in the theme you create. To get you started, Themefuse provides you with a starter theme, which you can download as use (for free).

If you are considering building a theme from scratch, you will need to include some plugin setup files in the theme, you create. These must have files are provided by Themefuse as well, and can be downloaded from GitHub.

Themefuse also boasts of extensions for the Unyson framework, which can be used to extend the functionality of the framework. To speed up the development of your theme, you can consider using these extensions.

My Experience Building a Theme on the Unyson Framework

The Unyson framework, as mentioned, is a framework for developers. And I say this because even though there are an adequate number of hooks and filters the framework provides, a lot of coding effort has to be put into building a theme (which means, a novice developer might not be able to build one at an efficient pace).

Clean Code

However, my experience building a theme over the Unyson framework, has been great, thus far. The code is neat, and well structured, hence easy to comprehend.

Extensions

The framework does not inherently support any WordPress plugins (like WooCommerce, or LearnDash), but instead provides its own extensions (for e-Commerce, e-Learning, and so on), which can be used to build a theme to service a particular genre. You do not need to inherently support every available extension, but instead choose the extensions your theme supports. You can even extend extensions, by creating your very own child extensions.

Modular Structure

The framework employs a modular structure, which makes it simple for a child theme (created by an end user), to override a theme’s template files.

Drag & Drop Page Builder

The framework provides you a drag and drop page builder. Unlike page builder plugins which work only with pages, the drag & drop page builder by Unyson, works with pages, posts, and custom post types.  There are settings provided, enable or disable the page builder, for other post types, if needed.

How does Unyson compare to Genesis?

Genesis is quite a popular theme framework. And you might wonder how Unyson stacks up against it. But it would be unfair to compare Unyson with Genesis, because the approach taken by both theme frameworks is different.

Genesis is apt when you have to create a child theme. Whereas Unyson is suitable when you have to create a parent theme. With Genesis, the development time is drastically reduced. Because all you are doing, is creating a child theme. With Unyson, you have to create an entire theme, which can be then used as a parent theme by end users.

Unyson is a essentially a lightweight framework, but some extensions (like the styling extension), might make the framework heavy.

A primary point of difference, is that Unyson is completely free!

Does Unyson suit Your Requirements?

The bottom line, and the one I began with mentioning, is that Unyson is a great platform, to create a premium theme. A parent theme, to be more specific, which you can choose to sell on a marketplace.

Themefuse provides a good amount of documentation (well, they are getting there). They have published video tutorials as well, which can be of great help.

But above all, Themefuse’s primary asset is their great support. I commend them for that. And hey, all of it (including the extensions) is available for free.

Still confused? You can download the Unyson Framework and test it out for yourself! You can surely write to me, in the comments section below, and I will do my best to help you out!

Happy Holidays!