What you need to know
- Telegram has released a new update this week.
- It includes a new Power Saving Mode and new Playback speed options.
- The update also optimizes the app to run better on lower-end Android phones.
Telegram is one such messaging app that constantly delivers new features on the messaging platform and is often found competing neck to neck in introducing new tools challenging its rival WhatsApp. A recent update to the app brings a new power-saving mode and optimizations for lower-end Android phones.
Telegram already has many customizations, animations, and lightweight effects that keep users engaged in conversations on the messaging service. For instance, they comprise auto-playing gifs, stickers, videos, emoji animations, and more. These customizations bring a fun, energetic experience to the app, but with the new update, these animations can now be disabled to make any Android phone perform faster when using the app.
In an announcement blog post, Telegram says the new Power Saving mode can disable the said features to “extend battery life and improve performance on older devices.”
With the latest update, users can toggle Power Saving mode or tweak individual settings for autoplay, animations, and effects in Settings > Power Saving. Telegram says it has manually tested over 200 device types to create “optimized default settings” that ensure it delivers the best app user experience across all Android phones.
The other highlighted feature of the new update is the ability to change granular playback speed more flexibly. Currently, the messaging platform allows 0.5x, normal, 1.5x, and 2x playback speeds, which can be adjusted for videos, podcasts, and voice and video messages shared within the app. The ability is much more flexible now, as users can choose any speed, like 2.3x, between 0.2x-2.5x, just by holding the playback speed button.
The other nifty features within the update consist of the “Read time” feature, allowing users to check when their messages were read within a small group of 100 members. In addition, users who restrict themselves from joining a group created by complete strangers or their contacts can be requested to join via an invite link with the latest update. These invite links have previews to give users an idea of what they are getting into before joining.
As part of the latest update rollout, the other newly added features include animated emoji. The update comes with ten new packs of custom emojis for Telegram premium users. Similarly, new interactive emojis and reactions are also included with the update.
Telegram further says alongside the new features introduced; it has also fixed more than 400 known imperfections.
