Facebook today announced updates coming to Facebook Messenger as the app and service celebrates its tenth birthday. The new features include a new game, tighter integration with Facebook Pay, message effects, and more.
For Messenger users in the United States, Messenger now allows you to receive cash gifts directly within the app. This is being enabled thanks to Facebook Pay, and when cash is received, it comes wrapped in a gift with virtual balloons.
In the US, we're introducing a new way to receive cash gifts directly through Messenger. When a friend sends you a cash gift for your birthday, you'll be notified on Messenger and Facebook with their gift message wrapped and accompanied by virtual balloons. Once you confirm your Facebook Pay details, the cash gift will be instantly deposited into your bank account. To send a birthday cash gift, go to the Facebook mobile app and tap the button that appears alongside your friend's birthday posts in your Facebook News Feed or their profile.
Within the app, Messenger users will now be able to conduct polls within group chats, allowing groups to easily vote on specific topics and play "Most Likely to."
In more celebratory features, Messenger is releasing a new "Messenger is 10!" sticker pack to users, offering fun effects such as purple balloons or candles. Announced previously, users can also utilize "Soundmoji" and message effects to spruce up their chats.
Smaller features include an updated way to share contacts with other friends and family, and a sneak peek at "Word Effects." According to Messenger, Word Effects will be rolling out soon and will let users add specific emoji effects to specific words.
As someone who is smack in the middle of my 50’s who has seen my peers fully invested in this crap, I am really curious if anyone under 50 really wants all this garbage in their conversations? Is anyone under 50 even still on Facebook?
I remember when I was 30-something and drowning in all those forwarded jokes from every relative and friend over 50 when all I really wanted to know was how they were doing. And Lord help me if I dared to ask (nicely) to be removed from the mailing list for those things. My husband’s aunt didn’t speak to me for ages and one older friend totally dropped me.
I promised myself when it was my turn to be the grumpy old aunt I’d leave everyone the hell alone with the cutesy crap and just stick to business. Yes, I was always a grumpy mom.
Facebook is re-adding voice and video calling features to its main Facebook app after moving the features to Messenger back in 2014, reports Bloomberg.
Users in some countries including the United States are now able to make voice or video calls directly from the Facebook app. As of now, Facebook is testing the feature, which is meant to cut down on the number of times that Facebook users...
Thursday June 10, 2021 11:42 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick
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Friday January 21, 2022 10:45 am PST by Joe Rossignol
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This week through January 31, new Apple Card customers can receive 5% Daily Cash back for purchases made through Apple compared to the 3% reward typically offered to customers.
New Apple Card customers who create an account between December 26 and January 31 will be eligible for the 2% higher cash back on iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac, iPad, and other purchases when paid in full. Customers will...
Tuesday October 26, 2021 3:46 am PDT by Sami Fathi
Apple's privacy rules are "negatively affecting" Facebook, and its business, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg claimed during its most recent earnings call.
As a quick refresher, starting with iOS 14.5 and all newer versions of iOS and iPadOS, Apple requires that apps ask for users' permission to track them across other apps and websites. Under the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework, the...
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But every once in a while even Apple...
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In the United States, the baseline 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro chip is estimated to ship in three to four weeks, promising an arrival by at least...
Monday January 24, 2022 9:20 am PST by Juli Clover
AT&T today announced the launch of upgraded AT&T Fiber plans, which support speeds of up to 5 Gigabits for some customers. There are two separate plans, one "2 GIG" plan and one "5 GIG" plan, available to new and existing AT&T Fiber subscribers.
According to AT&T, the new plans are available to nearly 5.2 million customers across 70 metro areas including Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, San...
Apple's AirPods have been credited with saving a woman's life after a potentially fatal fall, People reports.
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As outlined on the Developer Forums and on Twitter, there are CloudKit connectivity issues that have been occurring since November. Some users of apps that have iCloud support built in are seeing the following message:...
As we roll into the latter half of January, we're starting to hear more about a potential spring Apple event, which is likely to take place in March or April. There are a number of potential announcements on deck, so an event would be a good opportunity for Apple to get them all out there.
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Top Rated Comments
I remember when I was 30-something and drowning in all those forwarded jokes from every relative and friend over 50 when all I really wanted to know was how they were doing. And Lord help me if I dared to ask (nicely) to be removed from the mailing list for those things. My husband’s aunt didn’t speak to me for ages and one older friend totally dropped me.
I promised myself when it was my turn to be the grumpy old aunt I’d leave everyone the hell alone with the cutesy crap and just stick to business. Yes, I was always a grumpy mom.