BlackBerry Messenger For Android Update Changes, New Features Explained

A new version of BlackBerry Messenger has arrived on Google’s Play Store. The update comes with a lot of changes and new features, so users are encouraged to download and install it once it becomes available in their region.

On Wednesday, BlackBerry began rolling out a new update to its BBM app for Android devices. The company says the latest version of the BBM app comes with a lot of improvements to the media sharing experience.

Based on the release notes for the update, BlackBerry is now allowing users to customize their BBM PIN for free. BlackBerry’s Custom PIN is a subscription-based feature exclusive to BBM. It basically allows users to create their personalized BBM PIN, which can be used when adding contacts to the app.

As a paid service, it is a must for users to renew their Custom PIN subscription to keep using their BBM PIN. So it’s definitely a good thing that BlackBerry is allowing users to customize their BBM PIN for free with the new update.

Another feature that BlackBerry tweaked for this new update is the background display of the app. It can be noted that BlackBerry changed the background/wallpaper in the chat section of the app through a previous update. The issue with that one is it didn’t allow Android users to change the background, leading some disgruntled people to vent their frustration online. BlackBerry may have learned about the issue, so now users can customize background colors in chat.

BlackBerry has also improved the reading experience on BBM for Android by introducing gird view in the Discover tab. In addition, the latest version of the app automatically downloads photos and videos in HD quality. This means, there’s no need for users to “Request HD” when they want the HD version of the images and clips sent to them by other users.

Lastly, BlackBerry is giving users total control over their data consumption. There’s now an option that allows auto-download photos and videos only when the Android device is connected to Wi-Fi. Of course, users have the freedom to download files using mobile data, depending on the data consumption behavior they set in the Settings menu of the app.

Below is the official release notes for the new BBM for Android update:

The update is now available for download from Google’s Play Store.