Update: Google Allo's new Assistant button rolling out to all users

Original post (3/2): Google has detailed three new additions coming to its messaging app Allo which should make conversations a little more fun and the interface easier to navigate. In the next Allo update, Google is rolling out an improved GIF search feature, animated emojis and a quicker way to access Google Assistant.

Starting with Google Assistant, this is the service which can be called upon from within Allo conversations to answer questions. To make it a more prominent, Google is putting the Assistant icon right inside the compose box: tap it once to launch it and start asking for those movie showtimes.

Next, Google is simplifying the GIF-finding process. In one of Allo’s most recent updates, Google added the Lucky GIF feature which provided a way to share random GIFs with friends. If you prefer something more specific, the new version of Allo helps you quickly navigate to the GIF search menu just by tapping on the smiley icon in your chat bar and swiping to the left.

Lastly, Google has added an animation to 10 of its emojis to make them a little more expressive. To see the effect, insert an emoji into your text field, then tap and hold the send button and drag upwards. It’s only available to some of the more common emojis but it will likely be adopted on others in future.

These features will be rolling out on Android from today and to iOS soon. They’re no doubt welcome editions, but Google hasn’t provided a strong enough reason for us to all quit WhatsApp just yet.