Bluesky is rolling out a new update introducing features that might ease the transition for social media users coming over from X (Twitter).
First up, version 1.100 adds emoji reactions to Bluesky's direct messaging system. Users can now respond to messages with quick emoji reactions by holding down on a message and selecting from common options like hearts, thumbs up, and laughing faces. For those wanting more expression, the three-dot menu provides access to a full emoji keyboard.
The app's search page has also been completely revamped and renamed "Explore." This new discovery hub prominently displays trending topics labeled with tags like "Hot" or "New," along with timestamps showing when topics started gaining traction.
Beyond trends, the Explore page now recommends accounts to follow across various interest categories such as Art, Sports, Music, and Politics. Users can also personalize their experience by selecting specific interests that inform what appears on their Explore page.
Meanwhile, for newcomers, Bluesky has added curated "Starter Packs," or pre-made lists of accounts focused on specific topics that users can follow with a single tap.
The features are designed to make the transition easier for users migrating from other platforms while improving content discovery within Bluesky.
Bluesky has over 34 million active users, according to the company. That's still a lot less than Meta's Threads in total users, but the platform continues to gain popularity as an alternative to X. The update is available now on the App Store [Direct Link] for iPhone users running iOS 15.1 or later.
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Today on MacRumors: A platform run by a few billionaires looks more like a platform run by a billionaire now. Hilarious.
The CEO of Bluesky is worth about $5m. She and the rest of the staff are a bunch of ex-Twitter software engineers who span off at the behest of ex-CEO Jack Dorsey to look at creating a federated platform. The company is ran as a public benefit and not purely for shareholder gain.
Its also a nice breezy social networking platform :)
Mastodon is run as a public benefit. I'm sure Bluesky's venture capitalist funding will have to paid back some day.
Imagine taking part in a Apple discussion forum and complaining about capitalism.
And Bro. Everyone is a millionaire these days. If you are capable of building a product that 35 million people use it’s ok that you can buy a house and go out for dinner. That’s perfectly within reason of wealth generation.
Fostering kindness and preventing harm is a higher good than freedom of speech
Reading some of the posts on Bluesky shows anything but kindness and preventing harm. It is merely a platform that moderates certain points of view and not others.
Biggest design overhaul since iOS 7 with Liquid Glass, plus new Apple Intelligence features and improvements to Messages, Phone, Safari, Shortcuts, and more. Developer beta available now ahead of public beta in July.
