Why it matters to you
If you use the Twitter app often, the new redesign might make it more enjoyable to navigate and interact with followers.
The users spoke and Twitter listened by giving the app a refresh while still keeping the interface familiar. The new update is meant to create a more aesthetically pleasing and easier user experience.
For those with an iPhone, you will find the update looks similar to the Android version since it saw these changes last year. For iOS, users can now access their profiles, settings, and Moments in a side navigation menu — reducing the number of tabs to switch from at the bottom of the screen — creating a simple browsing experience.
Another update, for iOS specifically, is the Safari View Controller now opens in the Twitter app, giving you access to websites where your account information is already saved. You will also be able to change your settings to always open the supported links in Safari Reader view as well as the option to increase color contrast.
Aside from usability, Twitter also switched up the typography by adding bolder headlines and rounded profile photos. These changes are meant to highlight categories like “In case you missed it” and “Today’s moments,” creating a greater distinction between sections on your feed. The rounded profile photos should also help make it easier to recognize exactly whose tweets are showing up on your timeline.
Tweets will also now be updated instantly — whether it is a retweet, like counts, or replies — you will see conversations happening in real time (bringing a new meaning to the term “live tweeting”). However, this feature is currently only available for iOS and Android, so you will not be able to see it on your web browser or Twitter Lite.
The last addition to the app is also Twitter’s way of making new tweeters feel comfortable using the platform, by making the icons easier to engage with. Users had apparently been attempting to use the reply icon — represented by an arrow — as a way to delete a tweet or go back to a previous page. The arrow has been replaced with a speech bubble to make its purpose more clear.
Twitter is gradually rolling out the update starting on Thursday for iOS, Android, TweetDeck, and Twitter Lite.