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Twitter app creates confusion by switching Copy Link and Bookmark buttons
Users are now trying to mass delete accidentally bookmarked tweets
Twitter has implemented some minor changes to its platform recently. This includes features such as changing the color of a "like" from red to pink, to changing how tweets and replies appear on a user's profile page. Now, a new change for a limited number of its app holders has switched the order of the "Copy Link" and "Bookmark" buttons. And it seems rather unnecessary.
Twitter is testing 'unmentioning' to let you quickly leave toxic conversations
Now appearing for some users
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Twitter is the internet's favorite place to yell into the void, all while getting the chance to see some cute photos of dogs. Sometimes, conversations can get a bit heated — especially if you're dragged into a thread through tags. In these sorts of scenarios, your mentions and notifications can get a bit out of hand. Twitter already has some tools in place to escape that dreadful spiral, and soon, the social network will be adding a new option to quickly "nope" out of conversations in seconds — and for good.
Twitter's new reply-guy take on ads might earn you a bit of cash for those spicy tweets
You'll soon see some ads scattered between a tweet's replies
We're used to ads being part of our daily lives. As long as they're not overly invasive or try to install crap on our phones, we have no problem with them by now for the most part. Twitter shoves ads on you as well, but generally, you'll get them while you scroll down your Twitter feed integrated among other tweets from people you follow. The company is now considering adding ads to tweet conversations, as well, although there's a slight twist that you might like — if you're the original tweet's author, at least.
Twitter is getting a long overdue change (emphasis on the 'long')
Announced two months ago, non-cropped photos should be live for everyone now
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Twitter has been aggressively restricting access to third-party mobile apps, frustrating users by pushing them onto the company's branded version. But at least they've kept working on it, if not as fast as some would like. Case in point: the annoying image crop on the timeline is going away, making it easier to see vertically-oriented images without an extra tap.
You can now host Twitter's Clubhouse-style chatrooms on the Android app
The non-beta app has added the option to host Spaces
It seems like every major tech company is in a mad dash to create a feature that's at least somewhat similar to Clubhouse. Twitter is no exception: it's been slowly integrating Spaces into the beta version of its Android app. As of yesterday, at least some users (including multiple members of the AP team) on the main app release have been able to create and host Spaces.
Twitter apps get support for hardware two-factor security keys
Log in on Android or iOS with your hardware 2FA key
There are plenty of forms of so-called two-factor authentication when it comes to security, and not all of them are equal. Among the higher tiers of security is an actual, physical hardware key that requires you to plug it in when signing into an account. Fans of the standard will be glad to hear that Twitter has just announced that hardware key-based two-factor authentication can now be used to log in on Android and iOS.
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Twitter recently brought a custom share sheet to its iOS client that replaced the operating system's native solution, causing some disgruntled reactions. Now the social network's Android app is in for a similar treatment, though the two variations of a new UI are just replacing the application's already existing custom share sheet — and the new ones are definitely an improvement.
Twitter has become openly hostile to third-party apps over the past few years, to push users to its own applications. Many features have never been available to third-party apps, like group DMs, polls, and Moments. The company also introduced a token limit a few years ago, causing popular clients to suddenly stop working (like Flamingo).
For the longest time, the Twitter Android app just wasn't very good. Sure it was functional, but it was clear that Twitter was focusing more on its iOS client. Third-party clients were, for that time period, the absolute best way to use Twitter on Android devices. Even though the official app has improved drastically over the past year or so, especially with the Material makeover, there are still plenty of excellent alternative clients.
Back in May, the Alpha Twitter app received an updated interface that looked more rounded, with new icons and buttons in tow. Then it reached the Beta branch, with a few more changes. Despite Twitter 7.0 going live a few days ago, the UI changes were part of a server-side update that is rolling out to all users starting today.
As nice as it is to get a new Android TV app from a large web property (and also rare, natch), one might reasonably wonder what Twitter is doing on a platform almost exclusively dedicated to streaming video. The answer is, of course, streaming video: Twitter has a lucrative deal with the NFL to stream some but not all of this season's Thursday Night Football games for free on the service. This app would have been a lot more useful before we got 10 weeks into a 17-week season, but hey, gift horses and whatnot.
Right now we're hearing about off-season trades and commitments for pro sports like the NFL, NBA, and NHL. A similar phenomenon has happened in the somewhat smaller world of Twitter clients for Android. Joaquim Vergès, the well-known developer of the Falcon Pro Twitter client, has been hired by Twitter itself. According to a series of tweets posted Friday afternoon, Vergès says that he's been hired specifically to work with the "Android core UI team."
Are you still using Carbon for Twitter, despite Twitter's consistent efforts to kill off the third-party apps that built the service? Good for you. The developer thanks you, and is indeed still working on the app. The latest version introduces a ton of new features and fixes, notably surrounding image, GIF, and video support. Carbon can also support Twitter's new quote display function, which lets you reply to a tweet and embed it beneath your own.
Let's be clear about this: developers don't have any kind of obligation to update their apps for the Android L preview release. It's a preview - by definition, it's not ready for prime time, and developers shouldn't have to immediately treat it like consumer software. That said, it's nice to see that some have already begun to prepare for the full Android L release later this year. Even relatively large players like Twitter are getting in on the action.
January is generally held as a gloomy month, a time when there's nothing but slush on the ground and crap in the movie theaters. But it gave us more than a few fine apps, which you should take the opportunity to peruse. If you don't feel like meticulously combing through our massive bi-weekly app roundups, we've gathered the best of the best right here. Dig in, why don't you?
If you use the official Twitter app for Android... dear God, why are you using the official Twitter app for Android? Stop reading this story and go download a better client. If you simply can't be torn away from mediocrity, you'll find a few new options the next time you update Twitter in the Play Store. Chief among them is a new crop tool, with easy shortcuts to Square ("Instagram mode"), Wide, and Original.
Talon is the latest third-party Twitter client to fly into the Play Store, and while the competition may be fierce, there's always room for something new to claw its way in and do things a different way. This particular offering comes to us from Klinker Apps, the makers of Sliding Messaging, and prides itself on having superb KitKat integration. This means users fortunate enough to have Android 4.4 can enjoy a Twitter feed that rolls under translucent system bars, functionality that Google introduced in the latest version of the OS that has yet to make its way into many apps. Is this the only reason to get wrapped up in Talon? Not at all. Tucked away in this bird's feathers are a few other alterations that may just help you cut through your Twitter stream with less drag.
Plume For Twitter 5.4 Update Adds Push Notifications, Unread Counts, And A Few Other Tweaks
Plume For Twitter 5.4 Update Adds Push Notifications, Unread Counts, And A Few Other Tweaks
Flashier Twitter apps have come and gone, but I'm still pretty enamored with Plume. One reason is that the developer (LevelUp, of Beautiful Widgets fame) is constantly rolling out new features, and today's update adds a doozie: push notifications. You should get notifications for new tweets, replies, mentions, and messages more or less instantly, and the widget and main feed can now use a "Live Stream" mode.
Twitter is an awesome social discovery tool, but its implementation is fairly static. Even whiz-bang Twitter clients like the unfortunate Falcon Pro still present tweets in ye olde vertical column layout. Twheel (stylized "twheel") aims to bring a more innovative approach to Twitter. Tweets are presented in a wheel (natch) with 30 visible at any given time. Color-coordinated tags and bars let you see which ones are getting the most attention on Twitter, and sliding your finger around lets you highlight individual tweets to read them at the top of the screen.
Twitter For Android Updated To Version 3.3 - New Push Notification Options, Expanded Tweet Support, And More
Twitter for Android had been updated to version 3.3, adding support for Twitter's new "expanded tweet" feature, as well as account-specific push notifications.
Twitter for Android had been updated to version 3.3, adding support for Twitter's new "expanded tweet" feature, as well as account-specific push notifications. You can now select any account you're following, and using the drop down menu, choose to receive push notifications whenever that account makes a new tweet. Pretty awesome stuff.