Microsoft-owned Skype on Thursday announced a major redesign of its mobile application for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices. The new Skype 6.0 for iPhone and Skype 6.0 for iPad (still two separate downloads) features a sleeker look that the company says was “built for both the iPhone and iPad,” includes simpler navigation, a more powerful search and improved multi-tasking when switching between call and chat screens.
Viber for iPhone was refreshed this morning in the App Store with improved spam handling. I've noticed an increase of spam messages on Viber lately as I've been regularly getting spam messages from seemingly random people telling me I've won a free iPhone or some fishy contest prize.
While Viber offers the ability to block unwanted contacts from messaging you, this update should help sort out the influx of spam on the service.
No other changes are mentioned for Viber 5.5.1, a free download from the App Store.
Not to be outdone by rival Viber which rolled out animated stickers, location sharing, a brand new keypad and other enhancements in yesterday's refresh, Facebook-owned WhatsApp today pushed a substantial update to its App Store application.
WhatsApp for iPhone now features richer notifications settings with per-chat rules and mute options, a new swipe gesture to mark chats as read or unread, the ability to directly share contacts from the Contacts app and locations from Apple Maps, backups for your videos and much more.
Viber, the third most popular messaging platform after Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp (owned by Facebook) today delivered a few new features to its iPhone and iPad application in the App Store.
The new Viber 5.5 for iOS now includes rich link previews in the chat window, has the ability to exchange contact information via messages (in addition to QR codes), introduces animated stickers, permits easier video calling directly from a contact's profile or the recent calls list and more.
Microsoft-owned Skype has now made its web-based client available regardless of where you live, following its limited rollout last November.
Skype for Web runs in any web browser that supports modern web technologies, including Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Google's Chrome, Apple's Safari and Mozilla's Firefox on Windows and OS X.
Viber, the popular VoIP and messaging platform owned by Japan's Rakuten, hasn't updated its iPhone app in any meaningful way for a while now. And just when you thought they've neglected the iOS app for good, here comes a brand new release packing a few solid improvements.
I've always hated Viber wouldn't let me chat while on a VoIP or video call. This should be expected behavior as iPhones have always supported messaging during a cellular call.
In latest Viber 5.4 for iPhone update it's now possible to minimize a VoIP call and open any other screen within the app without interrupting your conversation.
Facebook confirmed today that free video calling in its mobile Messenger application has begun rolling out to all users worldwide. The feature launched in select markets on April 27, 2015.
“Quick update on video calling in Messenger: we're happy to share we've now rolled out the capability globally, with the exception of a few countries we're still working on improving quality for,” David Marcus, Messaging at Facebook, wrote in a post on Facebook this morning.
Following months of promises and multiple delays, Facebook-owned WhatsApp, which commands more than 800 million active users worldwide, on Tuesday started rolling a voice calling feature in its iPhone application.
WhatsApp Calling is a staggered release and will be rolling out “slowly over the next several weeks,” the company said, meaning it may not be available for you immediately.
In addition to calling other people for free over Wi-Fi networks, regardless of where they may live, the app has gained other enhancements, too, starting with a much welcomed app extension on iPhones running iOS 8. Sadly enough, this update hasn't brought out support for iOS 8's Interactive Notifications.
Glide for iPhone has been updated on the App Store today with Apple Watch support, becoming the first app to bring one-way real-time video messaging to the wrist-worn gizmo. The app lets you see a preview of video messages up to five minutes long on your wrist and respond straight from your Apple Watch.
Other features include getting quick updates to the Watch when friends send you videos, texts or photos without needing to take out your iPhone, accessing all chats and missed events and more.
If you're jailbroken, and have a little patience, you can get WhatsApp's new in-beta voice calling feature on your iPhone right now. To do so, you'll need to download the WhatsApp beta, download a package from Cydia, and following a couple of additional steps.
After following this tutorial, you will be able to access voice calling in WhatsApp. I can personally verify that this technique works, and was able to shoot a video walkthrough showing you the steps along with a live phone call.
Viber, the popular messaging platform second only to WhatsApp, today refreshed its iOS application with support for downloadable mobile games while introducing a new Sticker Menu to make finding sticker packs easier.
Viber Games, the headline new feature in Viber 5.2 for iOS and Android, allows users to play select mobile games with Viber characters Violet and Legcat and see how many coins they can earn.
After receiving an iOS 8 focused update earlier this month bringing a nice Share menu extension, Interactive Notifications and other improvements, Viber on Tuesday pushed a small update adding the Public Chats feature.
With Public Chats, Viber users can finally follow group conversations for specific topics that they’re into. Once you start following a group chat, you can then like any piece of content in the group chat, including messages, photos, videos, links and more.