Apple releases animated emoji sticker packs for iOS 10 Messages
As promised, Apple on Friday released the first official animated sticker packs for use with iOS 10 Messages, making the GIF-like graphics available to developers through iTunes.
Available to users currently running Apple's latest iOS 10 beta, the sticker packs made available through iTunes Preview include Smileys, Hearts, Hands and Classic Mac. Japanese website Mac Otakara spotted the release earlier today.
In their current form, stickers in Smileys, Hearts and Hands packs are carryovers from watchOS animated emojis, while Classic Mac features a batch of original Macintosh icons created by graphic designer Susan Kare.
Once installed, stickers can be accessed in the Messages app drawer and incorporated into a conversation with a tap. Alternatively, users can "peel" and place stickers around chat bubbles, on images or even double up on other stickers.
Announced onstage at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference, animated stickers are a subclass of iMessage App, or bite-sized apps created using the new Messages API. Apple is opening its Messages platform up to developers for the first time with iOS 10, allowing third-party add-ons and deep integration that goes far beyond stickers. In a demonstration at WWDC, for example, iMessage Apps were shown ordering food and completing Square payments.
Apple's sticker packs are expected to join original creations from outside developers when the iMessage App Store launches this fall.
To see animated stickers in action, check out AppleInsider's video preview of Messages in iOS 10. For more on Apple's next-generation mobile operating system, make sure to follow our Inside iOS 10 article series.
Available to users currently running Apple's latest iOS 10 beta, the sticker packs made available through iTunes Preview include Smileys, Hearts, Hands and Classic Mac. Japanese website Mac Otakara spotted the release earlier today.
In their current form, stickers in Smileys, Hearts and Hands packs are carryovers from watchOS animated emojis, while Classic Mac features a batch of original Macintosh icons created by graphic designer Susan Kare.
Once installed, stickers can be accessed in the Messages app drawer and incorporated into a conversation with a tap. Alternatively, users can "peel" and place stickers around chat bubbles, on images or even double up on other stickers.
Announced onstage at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference, animated stickers are a subclass of iMessage App, or bite-sized apps created using the new Messages API. Apple is opening its Messages platform up to developers for the first time with iOS 10, allowing third-party add-ons and deep integration that goes far beyond stickers. In a demonstration at WWDC, for example, iMessage Apps were shown ordering food and completing Square payments.
Apple's sticker packs are expected to join original creations from outside developers when the iMessage App Store launches this fall.
To see animated stickers in action, check out AppleInsider's video preview of Messages in iOS 10. For more on Apple's next-generation mobile operating system, make sure to follow our Inside iOS 10 article series.
Comments
"This is why they haven't updated the Macbook Pro?!?!?!"
I'm sure you'll be disappointed in it anyways.
In the past, the Egyptians used many hieroglyphic symbols to communicate, and future generations of humans, who are becoming dumber and dumber by the minute, will also communicate using thousands of smilies and various symbols, because that will of course be much easier than using the 26 letters in the alphabet.
You're right... it's not the same team. But Apple spends money on the various divisions inside Apple.
And it seems like the "stickers" team has been getting a lot of resources lately instead of the hardware team.
Seriously... are you not pissed off that many of Apple's computers haven't had any major updates in a while? Who would buy a Mid-2015 Haswell Macbook Pro today?
It used to be that Apple was always stuck waiting on Intel to deliver new chips. Well... Intel has released Broadwell and Skylake... and other manufacturers have been making machines with those architectures for the last 8 months.
Meanwhile... the Mac Pro hasn't been upgraded in years!
I'm sorry for the snark earlier. But while software is important... hardware is too.
Just trying to be funny with my "In before" post. And I even credited you for catching it.
I just bought a last gen 2012 MacPro and couldn't be happier. I'd rather have this than anything. Yes, Apple should update its products and I think they will later this year. I seriously doubt any software is limiting hardware. If anything, they're taking Mac hardware teams and using them for iOS hardware (I've heard them doing the same thing with OS X team helping out with iOS). And, I don't think money has been the limiting factor. What I do think is that there really hasn't been much to upgrade to as far as CPU's and graphics go until just recently. It wouldn't make much sense to release a totally new MacBook Pro with old specs, or slightly updated specs. The MacPro really hasn't had a decent CPU to update to until just now. I'd be continue to be patient and see what happens by fall. If you don't see things updated by fall then its time to get upset.
Take a look at how their system worked, it's fairly complex and is not too far afield of how we communicate today:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_hieroglyphs#Writing_system
Not trying to be a dick. Writing on the internet with the best intentions can easily come across wrong. I just thought that you might find it interesting.
I hope you can at least create and add custom stickers like this one!