Twitter to Launch Redesigned iOS App With Emphasis on Media Content

Twitter is planning a massive overhaul of its mobile apps, reports AllThingsD. While the redesigned iOS app won’t be launched until sometime after iOS 7 is available, it will include a focus on streams, doing away with the standard menu bar on the bottom of the screen.

Content, including what is found in today’s Home, Connect, Discover, and Me sections, will be organized into streams, which can be navigated by swiping. The Discover section of the app will be eliminated and embedded media will be available in all streams.

There will be a main, reverse-chronological stream like users are currently familiar with, as well as a stream for interactions between other users and conversations they’re having. Notably new, there will also be a stream dedicated entirely to photos shared on Twitter.

Essentially, moving through all the streams will be more of a visual experience, sources said, with a heavier emphasis on multimedia. There won’t be the need, for instance, to click inside a tweet to see a photo or a video — it’ll just appear in the stream. (For reference, see how Twitter’s current “Discover” tab treats some media content.)

The overall theme: Look pretty, feel richer, and become far more visually immersive than the text-heavy Twitter we’re all familiar with.

The company is also reportedly experimenting with a stream that will display only television-related tweets and conversations, designed to bump up user retention by helping first time Twitter users discover interesting content. In August, Twitter redesigned conversations within its app, adding lines and reordering conversations to make it easier to follow discussions.

Twitter is expected to launch an update for iOS 7 following its release on Wednesday, but the redesigned app will not be released until later this year.

Twitter for iOS is a universal app that can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

(View all)

Adam Betts

83 months ago

Wow, I am actually surprised these giant corporations are actually copying Jony Ive's design aesthetics. Get it straight through your heads, everyone. Jony Ive is not a UI designer. He doesn't understand the differences between print and digital, and how to use color properly for each medium. If you think a solid color is a vast "improvement" over a subtle gradient, bevel and drop shadow, you got to be out of your mind.

Can't these companies use their own brains and realize that ****ing frosted glass is just plain ugly, let alone terrible for user experience?

Calm down and remind yourself that you don't speak for us.

Rating: 5 Votes

bushido

83 months ago

So Twitter will look more like a combination of FB and iOS 7. If you can't innovate anymore, copy. FB might as well buy Twitter. Then Apple can buy FB and rename the new services, iFacebook, iTwitter and iInstagram.

well isnt that the point? to have all apps look similar to have nice "flow" throughout the whole os. i expect more apps to follow the same design

Rating: 3 Votes

Xenomorph

83 months ago

The official Twitter client is just useless.

You have to use Lists on Twitter to keep organized. On a web browser, you can go straight to the list. On Tweetbot you can go straight to a list. On the official client? Forget about it!

Official Twitter client (Android and iOS):
1) Load app.
2) Wait for it to finish loading a thousand tweets.
3) Scroll to / Tap on "Me"
4) Scroll to bottom of page
5) Tap "Lists"
6) Tap on favorite list I want to view.

Tweetbot:
1) Load app.

Web browser:
1) Load list.

It is a huge pain to mess with the official client. Why would they bury functionality like that?

Rating: 3 Votes

Eminemdrdre00

83 months ago

It'll probably look a lot like the Android beta version they launched last week:

http://www.androidcentral.com/twitter-releases-beta-update-drastically-new-interface

Rating: 3 Votes

spillproof

83 months ago

Can they play nice again with Instagram (and subsequently Facebook) so I can see Instagram photos inline on my feed? Please!

Rating: 2 Votes

tai.michael

83 months ago

Rating: 2 Votes

PsychoLogicXen

83 months ago

The most important new feature most users are hoping for however, is that Twitter finally removes the glossy reflection from the app's icon.

Rating: 2 Votes

WhackyNinja

83 months ago

Hope they give us a flatter UI and icon

Rating: 1 Votes

naeS1Sean

83 months ago

It'll probably look a lot like the Android beta version they launched last week:

Image (http://cdn.androidcentral.com/sites/androidcentral.com/files/imagecache/w450h400/postimages/444537/twitter-v5-beta-2.png)

Image (http://cdn.androidcentral.com/sites/androidcentral.com/files/imagecache/w450h400/postimages/444537/twitter-v5-beta-3.png)

http://www.androidcentral.com/twitter-releases-beta-update-drastically-new-interface

Very Nice...I love iOS 7. :apple:

----------

Ok, so they copied Facebook....

I think they copied iOS 7...

Rating: 1 Votes