Viber

AnyTrans brings support for automatic wireless iOS backups, WhatsApp/Viber chats & more [sponsor]

AnyTrans, a comprehensive Mac and Windows app by iMobie for transferring, backing up and managing your iOS, Android and cloud content, was updated recently with several new features, including comprehensive iOS backup enhancements with the selective restore and automatic wireless backup features, plus the ability to move WhatsApp and Viber chats between devices and support for downloading videos from 1,000+ online sources.

Viber 10 is here: a sleek new look, 2x faster, new privacy measures & more

The Rakuten-owned Viber messaging app released a major redesign effort this morning with a unified chat list, an overhauled call screen, additional privacy protections and more. In terms of eye candy, you'll definitely appreciate a bright, light header across the app.

Welcome to Viber 10

Viber 10 has a brand new design with a much sleeker look than before, but that's just the beginning because the app is now a lot faster and safer to use. The Viber service now sends messages 2x faster than ever. Plus, your voice and video calls now sound clearer than before.

Unified tabs, calls and contacts

With just three tabs at the bottom—Chat, Calls and More—replacing Viber's old tabs (Chats, Calls, Contacts, Public and More), the app is no doubt simpler to use than it used to be.

The unified call and contact list

The new organization minimizes tab switching because all your private and group chats, communities and public content are now in the main chat list.

Watch the new Viber in action right below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GaCOG4yyTE

The new Calls list holds your recent calls and your phone contacts in one place, with the Viber Out balance and your subscriptions displayed at the top of the screen.

Hidden-number Chats in Communities

Here's how Viber sells this feature:

As you spend more time in Communities on Viber, you will meet more and more new people who you wish to chat with directly.

Viber 10 includes Hidden-number Chats in Communities – a new, safe way for you to make new friends who share the same passions as you. Start chatting with them on Viber without revealing both sides’ phone numbers, until you both decide to do so.

They have added Hidden-number Chats in Communities in order to "encourage you to spark spontaneous connections" with other community members.

Viber 10 includes a new privacy-focused feature in Communities

Lastly, developers have officially confirmed in a blog post that group Viber calls with up to five people at the same time are scheduled to arrive "very soon".

Coming soon to Viber: group calling

Like WhatsApp, iMessage and other major messaging apps, Viber applies end-to-end encryption by default to all of your private and groups chats and voice/video calls.

Viber is a free download from App Store.

Viber for iPhone gains chat pinning and adjustable notification sounds

Rakuten-owned messaging app Viber is launching a pair of interesting enhancements in its mobile app for iPhone and iPad. The first improvement comes in the form of handy new options for adjusting Viber's default notification sound on a per-chat basis. The other enhancement lets you easily pin your favorite conversations to the top of the chat screen.

Aside from these improvements, Viber 6.8.8 for iPhone and iPad, a free download from App Store, includes unspecified bug fixes and performance improvements.

Chat pinning

With this feature, you can pin your favorite conversations to the top of the chat list where they're easier to spot. To pin a chat, swipe the conversations in the chat list, then select Pin to pin it to the top of the screen or Unpin if it's already pinned and you'd like to unpin it, as shown on the screenshots top of post.

Rival WhatsApp from Facebook is said to be working on chat pinning, too.

Custom notification sounds

Viber now allows you to override its default notification sound and replace it with the sounds listed in Settings → Sounds. You can choose a new default sound for all Viber notifications or select a different notification sound on a per-chat basis to make it easier to audibly distinguish between notifications for new messages from, say, your Mom and a co-worker.

Download Viber 6.8.8 for iOS via App Store.

You can now watch YouTube videos while you do other things on Viber for iPhone

The mobile Viber app today received an interesting update that enables a special mode for enjoying YouTube clips without having to leave the app, which  resembles iOS 9' picture in picture feature on iPad. As part of Viber versions 6.8.2 for iOS, tapping a YouTube URL sent or received in a conversation now brings up a floating overlay that can be moved around so that you can enjoy the video in minimized view while you do other things within the app.

Viber rolls out self destructing Secret Chats

Messaging service Viber today rolled out a new Secret Chats feature. Not to be confused with Secret Messages, a similar feature introduced in February 2017 that lets you define how long your photos, videos and texts are available after the recipient has opened them, Secret Chats use Viber's end-to-end encryption let you set a timer on individual messages so they disappear after a few seconds, get an alert when a screenshot is taken and be sure no messages get forwarded.

Viber rolls out auto-vanishing messages, instant video messages, rich notifications & more

Messaging service Viber today announced it is launching a new Secret Messages feature along with other improvements. Viber 6.6 for iOS now lets you send photos and videos that self-destruct after they've been seen. The app now supports iOS 10's rich notifications letting you press a Viber alert with 3D Touch to see the contents of your chats. You can send media as files and create short video messages, too, in the latest edition of Viber for iPhone.

Viber launches instant video messages, chat extensions, redesigned emoji & more

About a month and a half ago, Viber rolled out Public Accounts as a new way to reach brands. Today, the messaging service pushed another update to its mobile app on the App Store. With Viber 6.5.5 for iPhone, you can now send instant video messages to contacts, share interesting online content with chat extensions without leaving the app, enjoy completely redrawn emoticons and add up to 250 participants to a group chat.