Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) is the second most popular social media network in the world after Facebook, and it has planned to refresh the look of its website in order to better match its Android and iPhone applications.
As some users suggests, they have already started to experience the new changes but if you did not, you will soon start to notice them as well. At the time being, the company is still testing these small changes on a small percentage of the accounts and after that the new updates will be made readily available to the large audience as well. Approximately 1% of the users can see the changes, and some of them may have a deja-vu feeling as the changes somewhat resemble the old interface of Twitter. So far, most user reactions are positive.
This refreshed look of Twitter comes with several updates and benefits as well – there are several new settings and features that will allow you to take Twitter profile personalization a step further by adding accent color. Also, the color of the navigation style has changes as well and the direct message icon has been slightly changed too. All these changes are designed to make website navigation smoother, easier and more pleasant for Android and iOS users. Nonetheless, it must be mentioned that these small tweaks are only aimed at the aesthetics of the website rather than at its functionalities – while the style and colors of the interface may have changed, the main features and functions of Twitter are still the same.
Another notable benefit of this update is the fact that the pop-up compose window will be eliminated, which will surely help the website sync better with the mobile applications (the pop-up window has been turned into an inline compose box). The location of the profile box has changed as well, as it can now be found on the left side of the main timeline. The compose box has been moved to the left side as well, thus allowing users to tweet more easily without being bothered by the pop-up window.
The bottom line is that these small changes regarding the look and the interface of the website aim to increase usability and to make the website more user-friendly and a bit lighter weight. At the same time, this aims to stimulate users to tweet more by making it easier for them to do so. Making the Web edition of Twitter more similar to the iOS and Android apps is certainly a very wise move.
