Telegram is working on adding iMessage-like emoji reactions

A screen recording has emerged from the iOS beta

Telegram is probably already the single messenger to boast the most features, but the developers behind it aren’t looking to slow down anytime soon. We’ve only recently spotted the company working on the ability to hide spoilers, and now, another upcoming quality-of-life feature has made its way into the iOS beta of the app: message reactions.

As shared in the Telegram subreddit (citing the so-called Beta Info Telegram channel), the app has gained a default selection of 11 reaction emoji that will make it easier to share how you feel about a message, ranging from thumbs up, thumbs down, heart, laughter, and party popper all the way to pile of poop and vomit. In groups, it’s possible to see who reacted with which emoji, and administrators will be able to disable the feature on a per-group or per-channel basis. It’s also possible to allow only a small selection of reaction emoji.

Each of the reactions is accompanied by a playful animation when triggered, with the fire emoji properly burning up and the thumbs-up reaction spawning a slew of differently colored thumbs from its epicenter.

So far, we’ve only got our eyes on the iOS beta of Telegram showcasing reactions, but it’s safe to assume that Telegram will soon bring it to all of its supported platforms, including Android. After all, it’s a cross-platform messenger that does its best to ensure feature parity across the most relevant operating systems.

Telegram isn’t exactly reinventing the wheel here, as many other services have long supported reactions, with Facebook and Facebook Messenger being the most ubiquitous examples. But others like Slack, Discord, and Apple iMessage have long allowed for reactions, too, just like Google Messages. It’s great to see Telegram jumping on board with this, as it makes conversations a lot less cluttered when you just want to acknowledge that you've received some information.

Thanks: Chris

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