The Rakuten-owned Viber messaging app released a major redesign effort this morning with a unified chat list, an overhauled call screen, additional privacy protections and more. In terms of eye candy, you’ll definitely appreciate a bright, light header across the app.
Welcome to Viber 10
Viber 10 has a brand new design with a much sleeker look than before, but that’s just the beginning because the app is now a lot faster and safer to use. The Viber service now sends messages 2x faster than ever. Plus, your voice and video calls now sound clearer than before.
Unified tabs, calls and contacts
With just three tabs at the bottom—Chat, Calls and More—replacing Viber’s old tabs (Chats, Calls, Contacts, Public and More), the app is no doubt simpler to use than it used to be.
The new organization minimizes tab switching because all your private and group chats, communities and public content are now in the main chat list.
Watch the new Viber in action right below.
The new Calls list holds your recent calls and your phone contacts in one place, with the Viber Out balance and your subscriptions displayed at the top of the screen.
Hidden-number Chats in Communities
Here’s how Viber sells this feature:
As you spend more time in Communities on Viber, you will meet more and more new people who you wish to chat with directly.
Viber 10 includes Hidden-number Chats in Communities – a new, safe way for you to make new friends who share the same passions as you. Start chatting with them on Viber without revealing both sides’ phone numbers, until you both decide to do so.
They have added Hidden-number Chats in Communities in order to “encourage you to spark spontaneous connections” with other community members.
Lastly, developers have officially confirmed in a blog post that group Viber calls with up to five people at the same time are scheduled to arrive “very soon”.
Like WhatsApp, iMessage and other major messaging apps, Viber applies end-to-end encryption by default to all of your private and groups chats and voice/video calls.