New Set Of Emoji's are Coming to Android

Recently iOS users were greeted with a whole new set of emoji arriving in iOS 9.1. This marks yet another Unicode update (8.0) iOS users get to enjoy, while Android users are still stuck waiting on the diversity themed Unicode 7.0 update which gave the user the ability to select skin color on select emoji. In fact, iOS now officially has every single emoji ever created, dating all the way back to Unicode 1.1 from 1993.

We Android users? Well, despite seeing a brand new firmware arrive (Android 6.0 Marshmallow), we were surprised to find no work had been done on supporting the new Unicode 7.0 or now, the 8.0 emoji. That meant whenever someone posted the new emoji on social networks or in messaging apps (with the exception of WhatsApp which is always kept up to date), Android users were met with a blank box or nothing at all. But it might not be that way for long.

So I have a feeling y'all want new emojis? a) Thanks for the feedback, b) We're on it, and c) Sorry!

— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) October 23, 2015

For those losing sleep wondering “When will Android get the new taco/hotdog/floating businessman emoji?” it seems it could be soon. Newly appointed Android SVP Hiroshi Lockheimer apologized on Twitter yesterday but wants everyone to know Google’s working on it. Of course, no specific dates or which specific Android version that will introduce the new emoji was mentioned, but hopefully they’re making this a priority given we’re now officially 2 Unicode updates behind.

With Unicode 9.0 slated to arrive in mid-2016 — which could include paella, face palm, and even a little cowboy hat wearing emoji — we can only hope Google appoints some sort of new emoji department within Android to take care of these things. Even then, you have to remember that it can take a long while before Android firmware updates trickle down to non-Nexus hardware, and even longer if you have a carrier branded device.

Which is your favorite?

Sid Goswami is a tech enthusiast, besides being an avid Android fan and blogger, Sid wants to be a photographer and a designer. He can usually be found reading through blogs, taking photos. He's a student and a PHP web developer.