Skype 5.3 for Android adds updated UI w/ chat bubbles, animated emoticons & emoji support, more

Skype today released an update to its Android app, version 5.3, which introduces new features that bring the Android version more up-to-date with features recently released for iOS and desktop users.

Among the new features, Skype 5.3 for Android includes an updated UI with chat bubbles, which looks much like the Skype experience already on other platforms.

The update also includes large and animated emoticons, emoji support, and other performance and user experience enhancements.

With Skype 5.3 for Android, we’ve made some big changes to make the chat experience more consistent and more fun. You’ll see a new bubble style chat layout, similar to the Skype apps on desktop and iPhone. We haven’t just improved how your chat looks, but also what you can say. We added support for emoji, so you can go beyond Skype’s emoticons and triple the number of ways you can express yourself without typing a single word. When you choose one of Skype’s emoticons, we’re rolling out a new feature to display a large animated version, if the emoticon’s the only thing you send in a message.

A full list of what’s new in version 5.3 of Skype for Android is below:

• Catching up on an active conversation is now easier; chat will no longer auto-scroll to the latest as new messages come in.
• Now you can change and view avatars for all of your group chats; just use the “Participants” option in a group chat to get started.
• After signing out, you will now need to re-enter user name and password to sign in again. This will make it easier on those of you who use multiple accounts.

Skype 5.3 for Android will be available on Google Play today.

Skype’s Qik Android app is also receiving an update today:

We created 8 new effects you can use while recording your videos to make them more fun and playful. Once you open the viewfinder, you can select an effect to apply to your video. You can even switch from one to another while you’re recording to include multiple effects in one video message. Choose from favorites like mirror, x-ray and Minecraft (a staff favorite that makes you look 8-bit) or go crazy with hearts or snow.