In a bid to bring more diversity to its keyboards, Apple will release 59 new emojis to its keyboard for iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple Watches this fall. In a major update to the “couples holding hands” emoji, users will soon be able to select any combination of skin tone, to personalize the people holding hands, opening up more than 75 possible combinations, the iPhone-maker said.
Furthermore, introducing more disability-themed emojis, Apple keyboards will soon offer a new guide dog, an ear with a hearing aid, wheelchairs, a prosthetic arm and a prosthetic leg as well. “Celebrating diversity in all its many forms is integral to Apple’s values and these new options help fill a significant gap in the emoji keyboard,” Apple said.
Other new emojis making way into Apple keyboard includes a new smiley face for yawning, a one-piece swimsuit. There are new food items as well, which includes a waffle, falafel, butter and garlic. One will also witness new animals like the sloth, flamingo, orangutan and skunk. Furthermore, the new emojis would be made available this fall with a free software update on Apple devices.
“Thousands of emoji are currently available. This includes emotive smiley faces, gender-neutral characters, more professions, various clothing options, food types, animals, mythical creatures and more. New emoji are created based on the approved characters in Unicode 12.0,” the company said.
Separately, it was recently reported that Apple has taken four of its lower-priced phones off the shelves. These include the iPhone SE, along with other models like the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. These models are currently out of stock on Amazon India. Flipkart, on the other hand, has some stocks of iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone 6 models on sale. Following the move, buying an entry-level Apple iPhone has become more expensive.
“Cupertino does not want Apple India to chase volumes by discounting at the cost of profit. These models which are being phased out will increase the average selling price of iPhones in India and boost both profit and revenue,” ET reported.
– With inputs from IANS
