Telegram rolled out its first major update of 2023 on February 3 adding a few more important features. Telegram’s last major update was in December last year. However, the major part of the latest updates is available for Telegram premium users only, among which is also the option of translating an entire chat in real time. From the options menu, users can choose which languages to translate to or hide the translation bar at the top of any foreign-language thread, including personal chats, groups, and channels.
Among updates that are available for all users is the option to see a detailed breakdown of the network usage by the Telegram app. According to a post on Telegram’s official site read, “You can see how much data has been used by Telegram with detailed pie charts for Wi-Fi and mobile data – and adjust your auto-download settings to suit your data plan.”
Users can also control the autosave feature of any incoming media with the latest Telegram update. “You can control when media is saved automatically to your gallery based on its size, type, and which chat it was received from. This menu now also supports exceptions, so you can only save exactly what you want,” the post read. This feature is supported by another called “Granular Media Permissions”, which allows admins to “choose whether group members are allowed to send 9 distinct media types – like photos, voice or video messages. They can also disable text messages to create media-only groups.” It also enables “voice notes only or quiz-only communication” without regular admin interference.
As a result of the new update, Telegram users who have logged out will be able to quickly re-enter their Apple IDs or Google IDs without waiting to receive an SMS OTP code, However, If they have a 2-Step Verification password they will still have to enter it. Telegram has no veto on that because it is a personal setting a user has wished to engage.
Furthermore, this update allows bot developers on Telegram to “add special buttons that allow users to select groups, channels, or people that meet predefined criteria. For example, this can be used to quickly add the bot to a group where the user is an admin and topics are enabled.”
Telegram also introduced several updates with regard to emojis. According to the post, the site has added hundreds of custom emojis and interactive emojis, the latter of which will “unleash a full-screen effect” when tapped. All “stickers and emoji are now sorted by categories” and users can “hold any emoji to zoom in and get a better look before sending.” Telegram also allows “any sticker or animated emoji” to turn “into a profile picture.”
Another premium feature update mentioned in the post is the offer of a 40 percent discount on the “Telegram Premium subscription by pre-paying for a year.”
