The Steam Chat app hits iPhone, Valve says voice calling will follow at a later stage
This is a nicely done app aimed at all fans of Steam games.
Messaging
Instagram is killing off its standalone Direct messaging app
Instagram is doing a little simplifying and housekeeping: the Facebook-owned company will be removing Direct, its standalone messaging app that was originally unveiled in 2017, within the next month.
WhatsApp won’t work on iOS 7 after February 1, 2020
The Facebook-owned messaging service has acknowledged in an updated support document that its iOS app will stop working on aging iPhones and iPads powered by iOS 7.
Messenger news: a rebuilt iOS app with <30MB footprint, watching videos together & more
Aside from a faster, lighter app, Messenger is getting two new major features—a new way to watch videos together with other people and better ways to connect with close friends.
Facebook to release the native Messenger Desktop app for Mac later this year
Messenger Desktop will roll out globally on macOS and Windows later this year, bringing the same features as the mobile app on your iPhone, including group video calling.
The best iPhone emoji keyboard apps
You can make your messages a lot more fun. These are the best iPhone emoji keyboard apps to spruce up your texts and emails.
BlackBerry Messenger shutting down next month
BlackBerry announced on Thursday that it will be closing its once-popular messaging platform next month. The company says the consumer-side of the BBM service will officially shut down on May 31st, but it plans to keep the enterprise version online for the foreseeable future, and it will be opening that up to all users.
Skype is testing the ability to share your iPhone’s screen during video calls
The ability to share anything shown on your iPhone’s display with friends, family or coworkers on a video call is coming soon to Skype for iOS and Android, Microsoft has confirmed.
Facebook might reintegrate Messenger back into its eponymous mobile app
The social network appears to be testing basic chat functionalities within the mobile Facebook app, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the standalone Messenger app will be going away anytime soon.
WhatsApp is reportedly working on an official iPad app, here are the screenshots
The upcoming release will take full advantage of the bigger canvas to power possible new features, including a split chat view letting one follow multiple chats at the same time.
WhatsApp users finally have an option to control who can add them to groups
WhatsApp users have expressed frustration over people adding them to groups without their consent, but new privacy options put an end to that. Now users must message you an invite link that must be accepted before you’re added.
How to check if a phone number is on WhatsApp
A little known feature in Facebook’s WhatsApp software allows you to see if a particular phone number has been registered with the service before trying to message it.