Telegram Apps Get Improved Media Sharing, Revamped UI, and Bots 2.0

Folks at Telegram have been working hard behind the curtains and have introduced more updates to their app. This time the company has updated its Bots platform, calling it Bots 2.0, and has brought a new UI that lets you share and preview content easily than before.

Telegram, as a part of the update (v3.8) now lets iOS users easily share photos and videos to other chat windows along with a comment or to other apps such as Firefox, YouTube, Chrome and more. iOS users can also use the 'Tap and hold to preview' feature for gif images. Pulling it up will bring additional actions. A new look for documents and progress bars are also included in the update. Tap and hold functionality to preview or send content is also available for inline Bots.

The iOS users additionally get a new video player as well. The app comes with an in-app media player letting users watch YouTube and other videos without much hassle and in lesser taps. Adding new stickers are easy as you can simply tap on any sticker in a chat to instantly open the relevant sticker pack. Previewing and sending stickers from this menu is also possible.

As for Android, the updated Telegram app now has a redesigned chat screen, optimised colours, redesigned buttons and message bubbles, new progress bars, as well as fully revamped documents and attachments. The updated Android and iOS versions of the Telegram app are available to download from Google Play and the App Store.

Bot API 2.0 offers developers new integrations and functions. Users can now interact with the bots in new ways, including by sending fewer messages. Telegram has given developers inline keyboards, callback and URL buttons, location permissions, and on-the-fly message editing to use.

To show some of the functionality possible with these features, Telegram created a few sample bots. The sample @music bot can help users send MP3s to other chats directly from the input field. Bots can also ask users to share their location. For instance, the sample @foursquare bot utilises our new location features and sends addresses of places and venues nearby. One can even connect @Youtube bot with their accounts to view related content.

"These sample bots are but the beginning. Our Bot API 2.0 allows developers to create fluid and easy-to-use interfaces for powerful bots. And we will be seeing a lot of new ones in the coming months, after all, 2016 is the year of bots," the Telegram blog post said.