Bluesky Redesigns Search Interface, Adds Emojis for DMs

A new version of the social network Bluesky’s software is being released; it incorporates some of the features that previous X users have missed. 

First up, version 1.100 of Bluesky introduces features that may make the switch easier for users switching from X (Twitter) to Bluesky. Users can now respond to messages with quick emoji reactions by holding down on a message and choosing from popular options like hearts, thumbs up, and laughing faces. Additionally, the app’s search page has been completely redesigned and revamped with the name changed to “Explore,” which will take users to Starter Packs, suggested profiles, trends, and more. It is also incorporating chat reactions into its direct messaging function. This new discovery hub prominently displays trending topics labelled with tags like “Hot” or “New,” along with timestamps indicating when topics began gaining traction.

In addition to trends, the Explore page now suggests accounts to follow in a variety of interest categories, including politics, sports, music, and art. Users can also customize their experience by choosing particular interests that influence what shows on their Explore page. These features are intended to facilitate users moving from other platforms and enhance content discovery within Bluesky.

Both capabilities are based on X, which since 2020 has allowed users to respond to direct messages with an emoji. A few years later, X added more emojis to the function, enabling users to select any of the pre-selected ones.

The same is now available in Bluesky, where users can add a reaction by clicking on the emoji button next to a person’s message. In the initial pop-up, a few common emojis are available, such as the heart, thumbs up, eyes, sad face, and laughing face, but users can choose any other emoji as their reaction by clicking on the three-dot menu, just like in X.

Notably, with the latest iteration, the Bluesky search page has become more useful by connecting visitors to the network’s trending content. When Bluesky was smaller, a feature like this would not have made as much sense, but now that it has grown to a sizable user base of over 34 million, it is simpler to see trends emerging among the numerous conversations on the site.

Some of the current trends, for example, are connected to current events, such as Trump’s tariffs and their effects, while others highlight well-liked groups on Bluesky, such as BookSky‘s readers. Labels like “New” or “Hot” or the time since they started trending, such as “5 hours ago,” are also used to identify the trends.

Along with offering recommendations for accounts to follow within various categories, such as Art, Sports, Music, Comics, Politics, Science, News, Animals, Books, Video Games, and others, the new Explore page also allows users to enter their own interests to better customize the content that is displayed to them on Bluesky. Below this, the app suggests intriguing Starter Packs, which are curated lists of users that new users can follow with a click, as well as recommendations for other well-liked custom feeds, such as NFL+, which links users to people discussing American football on Bluesky.

Paul Frazee, CTO of Bluesky, praised the company’s recent appointment of Darrin Loeliger earlier this week, claiming that he demonstrated to the team “the upside of hiring a designer” and was responsible for the new Explore page.

Even though they are minor enhancements, these new features may help former X users feel more at ease when they join Bluesky since they will have comparable tools to interact with friends and find conversations, individuals, and hobbies.

The update is now available on the App Store. Here is the link to get it for iPhone users running iOS 15.1 or later. Bluesky claims to have over 34 million active users, which is still far less than Meta’s Threads in terms of overall users, but the platform is becoming more and more popular as an alternative to X.