The new messaging features of BBM allow customers to have added control on sending messages and on sharing content. Customers can now communicate while being discrete and enjoying more freedom at the same time.
The newest features which received positive feedbacks are the Timed Messages and Message Retraction. Customers said that unlike any other chat apps that are available today, the new features add a totally new dynamic to sending messages through BBM's service.
Timed Messages allows customers to set the length of time that contacts can have access to shared messages and pictures in a chat. This gives more feeling of security to customers in keeping their messages safe from nosy or spying friends.
The new feature, which seemed inspired by the popular Snapchat, will enable shared text and pictures to self-destruct. Moreover, BlackBerry is enhancing the way customers send high-definition photos. There is also the new Discover Music option which works by allowing the user to see what form of media that his friends and contacts are listening to.
"We have been testing these features with customers over the last few weeks and the feedback has been incredible. They're telling us that Timed Messages and Message Retraction add a whole new dynamic to BBM - unlike any other chat app out there today," BlackBerry says in a blog post.
Message Retraction, as the name implies, will allow customers to 'retract' a message, eventually removing the message from BBM chat. This feature reduces the customer's worry on sending messages that were accidentally sent. Messages can still be retracted as long as they're deleted in time. Since BBM features read receipts, users can be assured that the message recipient didn't see the message before it was retracted.
BlackBerry warns users that BBM doesn't offer protection against screenshots of timed messages. The company will eventually roll the new features into a paid service. However, they will continue to be free for the next three months.
Though BBM is not the first business-focused messaging service to incorporate disappearing messages as one of its features, it understands very well that such feature will still enjoy popularity among its users who are keen on sending more secured messages.
It should be remembered however that BlackBerry has been accused in the past of archiving BBM messages. They have also been perceived to have the ability to intercept BBMs if summoned by a court. Moreover, users should understand that when a message is authentically sensitive, it shouldn't be sent electronically at all.
The new update also features higher-quality photos and new stickers. Apart from BlackBerry, the new feature will also be available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone users. If the update doesn't appear yet, BlackBerry says that it may take 24 hours or more for the update to appear in the app store and it will also depend on the user's mobile platform and region.
