Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Apple Rolls Out Nearly 400 New Emojis With Latest iOS Update, Including Gender-Neutral Options

Apple Rolls Out Nearly 400 New Emojis With Latest iOS Update, Including Gender-Neutral Options

@Emojipedia/Twitter

Emojis featuring gender-neutral characters and people with disabilities are among those that have been released to Apple devices users as part of its latest software.


Users will also now be able to select the ethnicity of each character in the “holding hands" emoji, while a drop of blood designed to represent menstruation has also been introduced following a campaign to fight period stigma.

The new designs are part of nearly 400 emojis approved earlier this year which have now been released to Apple users as part of the iOS 13.2 update.

Many of the character-based emoji now also include a gender-neutral option alongside a male or female version.

@Emojipedia/Twitter

Icons showing hearing aids, wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs and guide dogs are also among the latest set of emojis from the Unicode Consortium, the body which maintains and regulates the library of characters.

Website Emojipedia, which is part of the Unicode Consortium and details icons found in updates, posted images online of the new gender-neutral emoji choices.

Last year, Apple said it wanted to improve the representation of those with disabilities, submitting a number of designs to Unicode after consulting a number of campaigns and charities on the issue.

In response to the introduction of the icons, Plan International UK's chief executive Rose Caldwell said: “We are thrilled to see the arrival of this long-awaited blood drop emoji, which signals a real breakthrough in the fight against period stigma.

“Girls, women and other menstruators told us this emoji would help them talk more freely about their periods, which is why we campaigned so hard to make it a reality.

“But this is only one part of the solution.

“We know that girls around the world are being held back because of their periods, whether that's the one in five girls here in the UK who are bullied and teased, girls in Zimbabwe who have dropped out of school because the recent cyclone destroyed their period-friendly toilets, or those living in refugee camps in Bangladesh who can't access period products since fleeing their homes.

“Period poverty will not stop until we fix the toxic trio of affordability of products, lack of education and period shame. We hope this emoji helps to keep the conversation going."

The software update also includes the introduction of Apple's new Deep Fusion photography technology, which uses machine learning to take and quickly analyze multiple photos before piecing together the best parts into a single image.

A new privacy control which enables users to opt-out of allowing Apple to store interactions with its voice assistant Siri has also been introduced.

iPhone and iPad users can access the new emojis by opening their Settings app, selecting General and then Software Update before confirming the installation of iOS 13.2

More from News

Alexnadria Ocasio-Cortez; Elon Musk
Jason Connolly/AFP via Getty Images; Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

AOC Rips Elon Musk After He Peddles Tired GOP 'Conspiracy Theory' About Rally Crowds

New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticized billionaire Elon Musk on X after Musk questioned the legitimacy of the crowd at her recent rally in Denver with Bernie Sanders.

Musk echoed a claim made by right-wing host Mario Nawfal, who alleged that a rally in Denver last week, featuring Ocasio-Cortez and Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders, was attended primarily by professional left-wing protesters affiliated with funded organizations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson
David M Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage/Getty Images

Samuel L. Jackson Recalls How Sage Advice From Bruce Willis Came True With Marvel Role

It's hard to imagine someone as successful as Samuel L. Jackson taking advice from anyone, no matter how helpful.

Bringing to life characters in Jurassic Park, Pulp Fiction, Star Wars, and every major superhero franchise including The Incredibles, it seems like Jackson has done it all.

Keep ReadingShow less
Author Dragged After Whining That Target's Fantasy Book Section Only Has 'Chick Lit'
@J0hnADouglas/X

Author Dragged After Whining That Target's Fantasy Book Section Only Has 'Chick Lit'

Author John A. Douglas visited a Target recently and had some opinions to share with his Twitter followers.

In a clip that he filmed and then posted, he showed the Fantasy section of the book shelves at the big box store, which was full of books that he claimed were mostly by women and for women.

Keep ReadingShow less
Parents of the daughter who died from measles
CHD

Texas Parents Whose Daughter Died From Measles Reaffirm That They're Still Anti-Vax

The Texas parents whose 6-year-old unvaccinated daughter died from measles said they have no regrets for not vaccinating their child.

The infected child's preventable death from the virus was the nation's first measles fatality in a decade.

Keep ReadingShow less
Hillary Clinton
Kimberly White/Getty Images for Common Sense Media

Hillary Clinton Has Iconic Reaction To Trump Administration's 'Atlantic' Text Scandal

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had a succinct response after Jeffrey Goldberg—the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic—revealed he was invited into a Signal chat with high-level Trump administration officials discussing military strategy surrounding their war strikes in Yemen.

Goldberg revealed a highly unusual and concerning situation where senior Trump administration officials were allegedly discussing war plans over a group chat on Signal. Goldberg recounted that Representative Mike Waltz added him to an 18-person group chat, which he initially suspected was a hoax or disinformation campaign.

Keep ReadingShow less