X now organizes your bookmarks, likes, videos in one place
What's the story
X has introduced a new feature, the "History" tab, to make content navigation easier for its users. The update is currently available on iOS devices. Nikitia Bier, X's Head of Product, said this new feature is designed to help users keep track of their favorite content and return to it whenever they want.
Feature details
New page categorizes saved content into 4 sections
The latest update has renamed the Bookmarks button in X's mobile app from the left-side menu to History. This new page categorizes your saved content into four sections: bookmarks, likes, videos, and articles. The idea is to make it easier for users to revisit their saved content at any time. While bookmarks and likes are intentional saves by the user, the videos and articles sections will be automatically populated based on what you watch or read on X.
User benefits
Update makes X feel more like a web browser
The addition of the History tab makes X feel more like a web browser, where users can revisit previously viewed content without having to save it explicitly. This update also combines features that were previously located in different areas of the app, with bookmarks in the main menu and likes hidden away as a tab on your user profile. Bier's announcement emphasizes that the History section is private to each user.
Content promotion
Promoting long-form article format
The new feature could also promote the use of X's long-form article format. The company has been promoting this format as a way for businesses and creators to share updates that go beyond the platform's standard post length of 280 characters. With the History tab, users can track articles they find while scrolling, creating a personalized news reader within the app.
Platform growth
Decline in referral traffic for web publishers
The update comes at a time when web publishers have seen a decline in referral traffic from platforms like Facebook and Google. This is due to changing algorithms and AI-powered experiences that have reduced clicks to external sites. X sees this trend as an opportunity to draw more publishers and creators to write directly on its platform, where distribution and discovery are built-in features.