Telegram has added interesting features on its messenger app targeted at chats and inviting people on the platform.
Auto-Delete
First is the Auto Delete Messages feature. You can now enable an auto-delete timer in all Telegram chats. This will auto delete messages either 24hours or 7 days after sending. This is an improvement of the current system where you can manually delete your messages. The auto-delete feature only applies to messages sent after the timer is set.
Enabling it is pretty straight forward on mobile. On Android, tap ⋮ button > Clear History then choose a duration. On iOS press and hold a message, tap Select > Clear Chat > Enable Auto-Delete.
Expiring Invite Links
Telegram already has invite links as a feature but expiring links is new. Now, admins can now create links with a limited duration, number of uses or both.
Invite links can be converted into a scannable QR code. This is important to embed your invite link to your group or channel to a broader audience.
To manage your invite links open your Group or Channel’s Profile > Edit > Invite Links. Tap (⋮) or (⋯) to convert a link to a QR Code.
Other features included in the update
Telegram also added a few other features in this update.
They improved chat import which allows you to import chats from messaging platforms like WhatsApp. Imported messages will now appear sorted by their original date. This only works for a Telegram chat with fewer than 1000 messages.
They have also improved their reporting system. They will always ask you to select specific messages when sending a report. You will be allowed to add a comment to give more context, especially when reporting fake accounts.
In addition, groups that have close to the 200,000 member limit can now convert into Broadcast Groups to allow unlimited members.
Telegram also added more animated emoji which have become quite the staple on Telegram messages. They include favourite emojis that people use everyday which is quite cool from the company.
