Slack, the workplace communication service that has taken the corporate communications space by storm, has released what is says is a “better, faster, and all around Android-ier” Slack app for Android, rewritten from the ground up. The biggest changes to come with this new version are a faster user experience for navigating around the app and the introduction of new user interface elements which follow the Material Design guidelines set forth by Google.

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Snapchat received a massive update today that introduces video chats and instant messaging. As for those of you concerned about privacy, don’t worry, self-destructing messages aren’t going anywhere. Users can swipe to the right on a contact’s name in their inbox to start a regular chat. Whenever you leave a session, messages viewed by you and the other participant will be cleared, however both of you will have the option to screenshot anything you’d like to save.

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Popular chat app whatsapp now allows Android users to exchange voice messages with a push-to-talk style function. The feature is also being pushed out simultaneously on the app’s other platforms: iOS, Blackberry, Nokia and Windows Phone.

We spend a lot of time at WhatsApp thinking how we can make keeping in touch easier, and we know there’s no substitute for hearing the sound of a friend or family member’s voice. So today we are introducing a new feature we are truly excited about: Voice Messages

While there are other push-to-talk apps out there, whatsapp has introduced a number of features which it says makes the functionality particularly easy to use …  expand full story

A message reported by a Google+ users suggests that Google’s rumored Babel integrated messaging service may be close to launch:

The screengrab posted by Patrick Dhawaan shows the message All conversations have been moved to the Trash. Because one or more are part of a Babel chat, these messages are still available in other Babel chat applications … expand full story

Are you feeling chatty with friends while using your Android device? Yeah, we have been there too. Luckily, IM+ is available on the Google Play Store. If you are like us, it is your go-to instant messaging client. The folks over at Shape Services, who the makers of IM+, released a new public beta of the app, version 6.1.8. The beta brings all sorts of goodies like a newly redesigned user-interface, new notifications, and a favorites section for contacts. If you are a user of AIM, Skype, Yahoo, Google Talk, or more, you might want to try this app. Check out the full change log, and how to install the beta, after the jump.

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