WhatsApp has decided that it no longer wants to be beholden to using Apple’s emoji designs and has moved to create its own batch of emojis, which may look rather familiar to iPhone fans.
For sometime Facebook-owned WhatsApp has adopted Apple’s emojis and fonts across all versions of its instant messaging app; whether you’re on Android, iOS, BlackBerry or using the desktop app, if you send or receive an emoji it will always use Apple’s designs. This has been a way to ensure a degree of uniformity to WhatsApp messages despite the apps being used on a wider-range of platforms.
But WhatsApp has moved to create its own emojis, which are being introduced in the Android beta v2.17.364 version of WhatsApp; Android fans keen to try them out can opt into Google’s Play Store beta program or download the beta from APK Mirror.
Don’t go expecting radical changes though, as the new emojis appear to be essentially tweaked versions of Apple’s emoji set, perhaps with a little bit of Android emoji design blended in. Many of the ‘laughing face’ and ‘crying’ emojis are near-identical to the Apple takes, with but the subtlest of differences in say eye positioning or shading.
New ‘fantasy’ characters do make an appearance though, and WhatsApp is supporting the latest approved emoji versions from Unicode’s Emoji 5.0 so will contain native emojis that Apple has yet to adopt as well. But the version of WhatsApp is still in beta, so there’s a chance that not all the emojis will make it through to the final cut.
Apple could find this move to be a minor slight by WhatsApp against its designs, but Cupertino appears to have been to caught up with making poos emojis appear to talk via its face tracking tech found in the upcoming iPhone X. Some tech can change lives, other tech can turn adults into gurning animated unicorns; thanks 2017.
Related: WhatsApp tips and tricks
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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.
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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.
