Telegram Apps Disappear From Apple's App Store, Telegram X Appears on Google Play

Popular messaging apps Telegram and Telegram X have supposedly disappeared from Apple's App Store in what seems to be an unexplained incident. In another set of announcements, Telegram on Wednesday officially launched the Telegram X app for Android. It is an experimental app that claims to offer more features, new design, and faster animations compared to the original version. Users can log in with their regular Telegram account. Additionally, TDLib has also been released for developers.

Talking about the iOS app mystery, a Reddit user on Thursday noticed that both Telegram apps have "disappeared from iOS app store." While the post hints towards the incident being related to the Telegram X for Android announcement, no link has yet been revealed between them. A comment on the thread, however, apparently provides an official statement from Telegram support - "This is not intended. Hopefully it will be resolved quickly. Both versions should come back soon." We shall update as and when the apps return to the App Store.

Separately, or not, the Telegram X for Android app was announced on Wednesday. Developed by the winner of TDLib (Telegram Database Library) two years ago, Telegram X is an experimental app that is committed to reinventing Telegram in terms of speed, quality of animations, ease of use etc. "This app is experimental and may or may not eventually replace the existing official app. But even if it doesn't, it will speed up the development of Telegram by allowing us to quickly test new approaches and technologies," said the Telegram team in a blog post.

The Telegram X app on Android supports a new bubble-free mode for chats. This mode allows messages and photos to take up more screen real estate. The app also lets users tap and hold on chats to preview content without opening them. Apart from that, the app comes with several swiping actions - swipe left and right to switch between Chats and Calls, and swipe right on any message to open the forwarding menu.

Among other features, the Telegram X app has a redesigned music player, attachment menu, and optimised profile pages. The app is available for download from Google Play.

The TDLib or Telegram Database Library has also been released, in a separate announcement. TDLib is a tool that allows third-party developers to build custom Telegram apps.

Earlier this month, the Telegram app added a new Quick Replies feature on iOS and Android with version 4.7.