Discord Faces Massive Backlash For Their Latest Android Update
It's official: the new Discord Android update is the worst thing that has ever happened according to the Discord community on all platforms including Twitter and Reddit. The new user interface is compact and it sucks, the new features are useless, and overall the update just makes the app worse.
If you're thinking about updating to the new Discord on Android, don't. It's not worth it. Trust me, you're better off sticking with the old version.
Complaints concerning performance and quality after apps transition to cross-platform development are not uncommon. It is often noted by critics how applications lose native UI elements and conventions after making a switch. Discord has stated that they are “still retaining Android and iOS specific patterns in the UI.”
It is to be expected that bug-related issues will come up during and after the process of transitioning development, but it is a cause for concern when basic problems persist even after months of beta/alpha testing. At this time, the best course of action for Discord users on Android is to report any bugs.
Discord users have taken to social media to criticise these UI changes as the Android app was functioning fine prior to this new update but now it’s more compact and pretty much unusable for some.
What is React Native ?
React Native is an open source UI software framework created by Meta which can be used to develop apps for multiple platforms. Discord has been using this framework for the iOS app since 2015.
It's a software that developers use which allows you to create Android and iOS apps with a single code base. So there's no need to hire a dedicated iOS team and a dedicated Android team to create and maintain 2 different code bases for each platform.
How will it help Discord?
This switch will allow the company to release new features across every platform at the same time. Moreover, it will give the Android app a more desktop or iOS app feel. The fonts are aligned to the iOS app.
You ruined the app with the bigger usernames and smaller pfps etc, It’s really triggering and I easily accidentally send pictures or something, Without even wanting it! This update is ridiculous, I want old discord back.
— tweek (@bxtt3rs) August 17, 2022
Updates (in chronological order)
- Responding to a user’s query regarding the new compact UI design, Discord support said they’ll pass the feedback to their team. Also, they recommended adding the info to their feedback page.
- In the new compact UI design, some users don’t like the change where all emoticons automatically get changed to emojis. But fortunately, there’s a way to toggle it off.
Here’s how you can do that. User Settings > Text & Images > Toggle off “Automatically convert emoticons in your message to emoji” on Desktop (It would be synced to your phone automatically). - After the recent update, users are also complaining that they are unable to send links without converting them into files.
Overall, according to the Discord community, the new Android update is just a mess. It's ugly, it removes useful features, and it adds pointless gimmicks that no one will ever use. We hope developers listen to the community and fix the problems as soon as possible. When they do, we will update this article to let you know so stay tuned for more information.
That's all for today, hope you enjoyed today's article. Make sure to join our official Discord server to discuss further on this topic or suggest new articles!