Android app should follow Material Design, not iOS patterns
The recent Android update (12.4.*) introduces design elements directly ported from iOS, creating a non-native experience that ignores platform conventions and reduces usability.
Core issues:
Platform-inappropriate navigation
The fixed bottom tab bar (Chats / Contacts / Settings / Profile) wastes screen space on rarely used sections. Settings and Profile are accessed only occasionally, yet occupy permanent space. This reduces chat visibility and forces extra scrolling—especially problematic on smaller screens and during one-handed use.
Material Design addresses this with navigation drawers or contextual bottom sheets, showing relevant actions only when needed instead of always displaying everything.
Reduced information density
New borders, spacing, and visual effects in chat lists add visual clutter without functional benefit. Users scan dozens of chats regularly—extra noise slows this down and reduces the number of visible conversations per screen.
Inconsistency with platform expectations
Android users expect Material Design patterns because they are consistent across the OS and well-designed apps. Deviating from these creates cognitive friction and makes Telegram feel like a lazy cross-platform port rather than a thoughtfully designed Android app.
Why this matters:
iOS enforces Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines through App Store review. Android does not mandate Material Design, but this freedom should be used to create better native experiences—not to copy-paste iOS designs that don’t fit the platform.
Suggestion:
Design the Android UI according to Material Design principles. Use platform-appropriate navigation patterns, respect Android’s visual language, and optimize for different screen sizes and interaction models expected by Android users.
The desktop and web versions also deserve platform-native designs or their own Telegram style rather than a universal iOS aesthetic.
Totally Agreed. I just got the new UI and it’s honestly awful and distracting. It felt so unfamiliar that I thought my Telegram had been hacked. The iOS-style design simply doesn’t belong on Android, it ignores platform conventions and makes the app less comfortable to use. Please bring back the native Android UI or at least give users a choice.
J
Jan .
Uninstalled and got Telegram X. Pure garbage of update, nobody asked for this and solves NOTHING. Bring back the previous design, this is not iOS.
Oɾαƈɭҽ Sρԋιɳx
Absolutely agree, it uses too much space for stuff I don't use frequently or just for the sake of "looking nice" (which it doesn't). Plus it's bugged! I can't see what I'm typing below an attachment, I see either just blank field or a couple of random symbols from what I wrote, and I can no longer attach something after I started to type a message. Earlier there was a button for that, but not anymore. Moved to Nekogram for the time being.
O
Oldi
Yes, I completely agree. Please bring back the old look, or integrate an option where users can decide for themselves (without paying extra for premium). It doesn't just look like iOS, it looks ugly, stupid, and completely out of place. As we say in Germany, "Gewollt aber nicht gekonnt - trying but failing." I've read the numerous posts on Reddit and elsewhere, and they all make sense. Previously, it was sensibly and appropriately positioned; now it wastes valuable space. Displaying a menu that you barely open once a month is just... well, let's just say it's ridiculous.
Also, one more bug. If a supergroup has topics bar on the top, trying to scroll those topics results in a blank bar. Very convenient (no)
Aida Myōō (閒明王)
The new lower panel is useless (putting settings upfront lmao, truly the thing a user accesses several times a day), at least you could allow to hide it
Mike
It should be a toggle switch. The interface is just stupid, buttons we don't use that often suddenly take up a fairly large portion of the screen. The design clashes with Android's guidelines as well. This feature needs to be toggleable
I
I St
Give us at least a switch to get back to Material UI style. Current new telegrams theme is a total usability bull..it.
ardaq 🌌
just make interface like Brave browser with bottom adress bar. I created suggestion with name IDEAS
Andrea.
glory to telegram x
Unresolute
Nobody asked telegram to fix a problem we didn't have by actually making the UI worse just to stay up with tendencies nobody wants to stay up to, so please give us back the old UI or the option to choose at least
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option where users can decide for themselves (without paying extra for
premium). It doesn't just look like iOS, it looks ugly, stupid, and
completely out of place. As we say in Germany, "Gewollt aber nicht
gekonnt - trying but failing." I've read the numerous posts on Reddit
and elsewhere, and they all make sense. Previously, it was sensibly and
appropriately positioned; now it wastes valuable space. Displaying a
menu that you barely open once a month is just... well, let's just say
it's ridiculous.