TikTok is stepping up its game in DMs.
Users can now send voice notes, photos, and videos in direct messages on TikTok, TechCrunch first reported and TikTok confirmed to Mashable. Previously, users could only send TikTok videos or text over DMs.
Voice notes can be up to 60 seconds long while photos and videos can either come directly from a user's camera or can be selected from their camera roll. Users can edit the photos or videos in-message before they send it, too, according to TechCrunch.
To send a photo, head to your messages tab and click the camera icon at the bottom left or the landscape icon at the bottom right. To send a voice memo, click the microphone icon at the bottom right. When you send a voice note, the app encourages users to "send voice messages only to trusted friends. Be kind and respectful to keep our community safe."
Sending images in DMs has been requested time and time again by TikTok users, and, as NPR reported, voice notes are the new texts for young people.
"Texting can muddle meaning, and calls can trigger anxiety. But for many, short voice recordings offer an easier, low-pressure alternative," NPR wrote in 2023. Now, two whole years later, TikTok can finally join iMessage, Instagram DMs, WhatsApp, and more messaging platforms in offering this to its users.
There are, of course, some additional privacy measures. You can't send an image as a message request, which TikTok says is for user safety, according to TechCrunch. Message requests are only for sharing TikTok content, voice notes, and text. DMs are only available to users over 16 years old, and there are additional systems in place to protect users under 18 years old, including detecting and blocking images containing nudity, TechCrunch reported.
