Always considered yourself a bit of a Twitter star? Not anymore, buddy.
Twitter has officially removed the star as the icon to indicated when a post has been favourited.
Instead, people will now signal their love for a tweet using a red heart icon.
https://twitter.com/statuses/661558661131558915
What’s more, favourites won’t be called favourites anymore either; they’re now known as ‘likes’.
“We want to make Twitter easier and more rewarding to use, and we know that at times the star could be confusing, especially to newcomers,” explains Akarshan Kumar, Product Manager at Twitter. “
Kumar continues: “The heart, in contrast, is a universal symbol that resonates across languages, cultures, and time zones. The heart is more expressive, enabling you to convey a range of emotions and easily connect with people.”
Twitter has been testing the heart for a little while now, and Kumar claims that trial users “loved it”.
But are the hearts really a big winner for Twitter? We spoke to Ben Selby, Account Manager at JBi Digital, a London-based web design agency.
“This seems a strange move by Twitter,” Selby tells TrustedReviews. “The ‘fav’ was launched as a bookmarking feature, whereas a like is more of a social reognition tool. Not so much functional as it is pretty, liking lacks purpose.”
He continues: “The heart, and term ‘likes’, does not feel cohesive with the recent (US only for now) Home page change, which was designed around engaging idle users. Hearts are emotionally charged, and could well put off the very users they are now desperate to engage with.”
Selby adds: “
The move brings the Twitter into line with the company’s live-streaming video app Periscope, which also uses hearts for likes.
It’s worth noting that this update also applies to Vine, which is also owned by Twitter.
The new icon rolls out today, and will feature across the internet, iOS, Android, TweetDeck, and Twitter for Windows 10.
Related: Favourites vs Likes: 5 Twitter problems that actually need fixing
Unfortunately for Twitter, the move hasn’t gone down quite so well with its users. Check it out:
https://twitter.com/statuses/661575877176750082
https://twitter.com/statuses/661575596548481024
https://twitter.com/statuses/661564541277442048
https://twitter.com/statuses/661561756192477184
https://twitter.com/statuses/661559577943650304
What do you think of Twitter’s new ‘likes’ icon? Let us know in the comments.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
