Facebook Messenger PC app gets a new look with beta update – Times of India

Facebook has started to roll out a beta update of its Messenger app for Windows 11 and Windows 10. The beta update takes the app up to version 1320.11.119.0 and it also adds a new look. According to a report by TechRadar, with the update, the company has also started using the native Universal Windows Platform (UWP) instead of its own custom controls. Facebook-owned messaging platform WhatsApp also recently started to use UWP for its PC app.
With the new design, the app now resembles the look of other Windows 11 apps. Last week, Google rolled out the stable version of Chrome 96 web browser and it also now incorporates a similar design language as of Windows 11 on menu items and other UI elements. The most noticeable change that the app gets is in the performance.
Switching to UWP has reportedly accelerated the performance of the app dramatically. The company has also managed to reduce the size of the app by 100MB. You can experience the improvements by updating the app only if you have signed up for the beta program.
This week Facebook also announced that it is delaying end-to-end encryption of users’ messages on Messenger and Instagram. The move was announced by Antigone Davis, Facebook’s head of safety through a post in The Telegraph.
“We are taking our time to get this right and we don’t plan to finish the global rollout of end-to-end encryption by default across all our messaging services until sometime in 2023,” Antigone Davis wrote in The Telegraph.
“As a company that connects billions of people around the world and has built industry-leading technology, we’re determined to protect people’s private communications and keep people safe online,” added.
With E2EE only the sender and recipient will see their conversations, the firm wants to ensure that this does not interfere with the platform’s ability to help stop criminal activity.