Telegram's new update made the app even better to use.
The recent update to one of the most widely used secured messaging apps added the ability for users to discuss topics in an organized manner in large groups, collectible usernames built on a blockchain, transcriptions for video messages, and much more.
However, not everyone can use some features that were added to the app in the recent update.
Telegram Free New Features Details
Let's start with what's available for all. According to a blog post on the app's official website, these features are Topics in Groups, Collectible Usernames, a redesigned Night Mode for Telegram's iOS app, and Resizing Text for its Android app.
- Topics in Groups is a feature wherein some people in a group of 200 people can have a discussion separate from their group without actually leaving it first to create a separate group chat to do so. This feature works like individual chats between two people but is still connected within the group, much like WhatsApp's Communities. As such, it has its own shared media and notification settings. People in this chat can also use polls, pinned messages, and bots to discuss the topic they have in mind.
- Collectible Usernames allow Telegram users to use multiple usernames for each of their accounts and public chats to help them contact Telegram users or find their public groups in channels, per Phone Arena. These collectible usernames work much like the basic ones users have when registering for the app. They appear in Global Search results and come with their own links, which can be copied and pasted outside of Telegram. Unlike the basic usernames, though, they can be less than five characters long, allowing users to create unique names. Keeping track of them is easy as these collectible usernames are secured via blockchain courtesy of TON, a fast and scalable blockchain network. This means that Telegram's Collectible usernames can be acquired, exchanged, and sold much like NFTs.
- The redesigned Night Mode for Telegram's iOS app makes colors look more balanced with better blurring effects while scrolling in chats and the chat list.
- Meanwhile, resizing text in Telegram's chats can now increase the size of all the text in a chat. This improvement means that link previews, reply headers, and other text will also reflect the new size.
Telegram Premium-Exclusive New Features
Telegram's latest update also comes with new features exclusively available to Telegram Premium subscribers. These are Voice-to-Text for video messages and a new emoji pack.
- Voice-to-Text for video messages works similarly to Telegram Premium's ability to convert voice messages into text messages. Now, video messages can get transcripts of the audio within them, allowing users to read what's been said to improve clarity.
- Finally, Telegram added 12 new emoji packs for Premium subscribers to use either in messages and captions or to set them as statuses.
