THROWN A BONE
WhatsApp plots major change allowing users to get rid of app’s ‘ugly’ green revamp following huge backlash
See what users think of the new colour below
EAGLE-EYED WhatsApp users may have noticed a new shade of green wash over the app in recent weeks, following a redesign from Meta.
But the seemingly minor change has left users in uproar, branding the green revamp "ugly".
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While the Meta-owned instant messenger has not traditionally been one to offer much in terms of customisation, WhatsApp is reportedly throwing users a bone after the backlash.
In the latest, unreleased, version of WhatsApp on iOS, beta testers at WABetaInfo found new chat theme colours that would allow users to opt out of the new shade of green.
Users may be able to pick between blue, white, pink, and purple colour themes.
The themes dictate the colour of the chat bubbles and wallpaper.
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Although WhatsApp has also been developing a new option to control the app’s accent colour, according to the report.
If released, iOS users will be able to change the in-app button color from green to one of four other colours.
The customisation feature is still in development, hence why it's in an unreleased version of the iPhone app.
If Meta rolls out the new feature, iPhone owners will be able to customise the color of the chat bubbles and wallpaper.
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The feature has yet to be seen on Android.
The app in its current form does not allow users to make any alterations to the colour.
It's important to note that Meta may scrap the feature before it rolls it out worldwide.
And even if Meta is keen on the new addition, it may take months before it becomes public.
It's a human psyche thing, not an app's problem
By Millie Turner, Technology & Science Reporter
WhatsApp certainly needed to do more in terms of customisation, as one of the most used social media apps in the world.
Every few years or so, apps go under the knife for a facelift, often changing colour theme shades, fonts, and layouts.
Then a faceless executive comes out with a statement about how 'contemporary' the change is, and how it was 'designed with users in mind'.
But apps, and the folks behind them, need to wise up to one simple fact: people don't like change.
We all know how it feels: opening up an app you use everyday, awash with that disgusted, frustrated feeling as your muscle memory is tripping you up over a new layout.
Whether its a Facebook redesign that simply looks "gross" or a Twitter (now X) switch-up that literally gives its users headaches, people like what they know.
Human psychology plays a big role in this.
And it;s obviously unreasonable to expect app's to fade into relics of the past.
So what's the remedy? Time - time for people to get used to a new layout, time to tweak routines, and time to forget how things were before.
Inside the backlash
WhatsApp users first spotted the colour change in April.
Meta sometimes rolls out features to a handful of users as a sort of 'patch test'.
"The new WhatsApp interface is not a vibe at all, from blue to green. How? Why?" one person wrote on X.
"WhatsApp, if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it," another said.
"Yucking the new green color and the sentence case leading!"
Many hoped the company would do a u-turn on the feature, but instead the company has only doubled down on the change.
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In a statement at the time, Meta said: "We’ve made some changes to how WhatsApp looks and feels, including spacing, colors, icons and more.
"These changes bring a modern, new experience to WhatsApp and make it more accessible and easier to use."
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Wondering how to get the most out of WhatsApp? Read on to find out about all the hidden features, tips and hacks for the social media platform...
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