There are some times when words simply can’t convey the right emotion or feeling. It’s times like these we turn to pictures because, like they say a picture’s worth a thousand words. But what kind of picture do you choose? Emojis? WeChat Stickers? Gifs? What are these strange words and what are the differences between them?
Emoji: A small digital image or icon used to express an idea, emotion, etc., in electronic communication.
Gif: A lossless format for image files that supports both animated and static images
WeChat Sticker Gallery: The WeChat sticker gallery is one of many features on WeChat. It allows users to download hundreds of free “stickers” directly from the app, purchase stickers separately and download them into the sticker gallery or find them free from the web. In addition to the traditional stickers, users can add images and gifs.
After being an avid Emoji user for the past few years I took a 3 month break to explore the world of WeChat stickers. MIND. BLOWN. There are so many more possibilities with WeChat. They offer hundreds of sticker packs for free and allow you to add any stickers or Gifs that you’ve made or found. But that’s not all, the cartoon stickers are actually animated!
Yes, the latest iOS update added some long-awaited emojis like the middle-finger emoji, but who cares about that when you can have a cute dog cartoon where one of the dogs slaps the other?? I think that conveys more emotion, don’t you? Another cool feature WeChat has (that emojis don’t) is smart phrase recognition that suggests stickers when you type in certain words. And WeChat didn’t forget emojis! There are three phrases that set off a screen off falling emojis whenever they’re sent. Try typing “Happy Birthday”, “XOXO”, or “Miss You” into any WeChat conversation to test it out.
While emojis may be convenient because they’re built into the keyboard, they have a long way to go before they match the quality of WeChat stickers. Which one would you prefer?
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