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The Elon Musk-owned social network X (formerly Twitter) has started rolling out audio and video calling support to Android users. The update was shared by @enriquebrgn, who is one of the engineers working on the project.
Similar to iOS, only premium users of the platform can make full use of the audio and video calling features on Android. While anyone can receive calls, only premium subscribers can make audio and video calls on the platform. The engineer said the feature is rolling out slowly and will be available to those who install the latest update of the app.
X currently offers three paid tiers: Basic, Premium, and Premium+. Each higher tier comes with more features such as a blue checkmark, ads revenue sharing, longer video uploads, edit posts, and access to the xAI chatbot Grok. While the Premium tier sets users back by $8 every month, the Basic ($3/mo) and Premium+ ($16/mo) tiers were added a few months ago.
audio and video calls on X slowly rolling out for android users today! update your app and call your mother
— Enrique 🦖 (@enriquebrgn) January 18, 2024
Back in May 2023, Twitter (now X) started spreading the word that calling features are on the way. X CEO Linda Yaccarino and some leaked code from the app echoed the samelater. The feature was finally added to the iOS version of the app last October.
To start a call with an X user, open their DM (Direct Messages) conversation in the app or start a new conversation, then pick the desired option to start an audio/video call. The company explains in a support document that all accounts can receive calls in the app, however, you can control who can call you from the DM Settings.
You can only initiate an audio/video call with a user whom you have texted at least once, and you need to have push notifications enabled to get notified when you receive a call. While the calling works in a peer-to-peer fashion by default, a setting called Enhanced Call Privacy can hide your IP address by routing the traffic through the X infrastructure.
Via: TechCrunch
