Potential Twitter Redesign Abandons Text Stream For Photos

A potential Twitter redesign may be abandoning the 140 character text wall that has changed the way we share and receive our social information.

First reported by Mashable,profiles may be changing to better feature photos and videos rather than the short text blurbs that most people know. In the example below of Mashable’s features editor Matt Petronzio, we see a new category called “photos/videos” along side the familiar “tweets”, “following” and so on. Other changes involve the header image which is much wider and slightly thinner than the current dimensions of 1252 x 626. The new header image is 1500 x 500 which will give many people a chance to use that panoramic camera feature they have on their smartphones.

The possible change is on the heels of a less drastic change made to the Twitter homepage. In January the site was redesigned to bring it in line with its mobile look and feel. Other changes have been introduced but nothing has ever drifted away from the 140 character formula. The web based Profile pages were based around this vertical format and a change to a patchwork layout will bring the social feed on a parity with Facebook and Google +

Other changes that Twitter has introduced have included the new log-in screen which was launched prior to their IPO opening in November of 2013.

New features and design changes are nothing new and these tests are usually released to a small group of users, normally chosen at random from amongst the user base.

It is entirely possible this change will never see the light of day. The idea shows that Twitter is seriously considering changing its layout in a drastic way and it may have good reason to.

Now that Twitter is a publicly owned company it is beholden to its stock holders. When the first earnings report showed slow user growth stocks dropped by 17% and changes would have to be made. A search for a new layout to appeal to the exploding Pinterest crowd would make sense. While not showcased on the screenshot above, it is also possible that Twitter may integrate Vine more closely to take advantage of the company it purchased before it launched.

Whichever way Twitter goes, it looks like the days of its minimalistic appraoch to social media may be going by the wayside.

Featured Image – ©iStock.com/contrastaddict