Before even reading the first sentence of this article, some of you may have already started scrolling down to the comments section to tell us about the third-party Reddit client you think is superior. It's an age-old debate that always starts an Internet slap fight, but for most people, the official Reddit mobile app does the job just fine. The official Reddit for Android and iOS mobile apps may not provide the best Redditing experience, but they do tend to be the first to add major new features like Chat support. In a more recent example, the latest Android beta release hints at adding support for embedded GIFs and animated emotes in the comments, but it also brings some new quality of life features.
Here's the official changelog for the latest beta:
- Spoiler and NSFW (not safe for work) tags can now be set when creating or editing a post. This is available under the 'More' (three vertical dots) button, just above the keyboard
- Added a new 'Account settings' page to the 'Settings' screens
- Minor bug fixes and performance improvements
From left to right, the following 3 screenshots show the new features that are accessible in this latest update. First, when creating or editing a post, you can tap the 3 dot menu in the bottom left-hand corner to reveal buttons to mark the post as NSFW (not safe for work) and/or containing Spoilers. Next, there's a new Account settings section in Settings; in here, you can manage your Reddit profile's settings just like on the mobile or desktop site. Lastly, we spotted a new notification toggle to alert you when your Reddit "Cake Day" happens (ie. the anniversary of when you made your Reddit account. A cake will show up next to your profile's name whenever you comment. For some reason, people seem to care about that.)
An APK teardown can often predict features that may arrive in a future update of an application, but it is possible that any of the features we mention here may not make it in a future release. This is because these features are currently unimplemented in the live build and may be pulled at any time by the developers in a future build.
New strings in Reddit for Android v3.41 beta also reveal that the mobile app will soon support embedding GIFS in comments, using animated emojis in comments, and styling your username with color and up to 3 badges. These features will be available exclusively for Reddit Premium subscribers who comment on the /r/FortniteBR subreddit. The Reddit administrators have already made these features available for desktop users browsing the "new" Reddit interface, but they have been working to bring these features to mobile as well.
<string name="membership_crown_image_url">file:///android_asset/membership_paywall_crown.gif</string>
<string name="membership_demo_description_badges">Style your username with a badge and color</string>
<string name="membership_emotes_slide_description">Get access to premium animated emotes</string>
<string name="membership_emotes_slide_image_url">https://meta.redditmedia.com/public/all/mobile_assets/android/membership_tab_emotes.png</string>
<string name="membership_gifs_slide_description">Add GIFs to your comments</string>
<string name="membership_gifs_slide_image_url">https://meta.redditmedia.com/public/all/mobile_assets/android/membership_tab_gifs.png</string>
<string name="paywall_embed_gif_directly_in_your_comments">"Embed GIFs directly in your comments"</string>
<string name="paywall_get_up_to_3_badges">Get up to 3 badges</string>
<string name="paywall_loyalty_badges_subtitle">Show how long you’ve been supporting the subreddit.</string>
<string name="paywall_special_members_only">%1$s Only</string>
<string name="paywall_use_animated_emojis_in_comments">"Use animated emojis in comments"</string>
<string name="paywall_what_do_you_get">What do you get?</string>
You can download the latest stable version of the Reddit for Android app from the Google Play Store below. Version 3.41 is currently not available for the general public yet, however.