Android is the first major platform to support the newly-launched ginger emoji - here's how to get them right now
- Ginger emoji, along with more than 100 others, technically launched on Tuesday with the 11.0 update to the Unicode emoji list.
- But people haven't been able to use them yet since no platforms supported them.
- Google announced Wednesday that Android phones with the beta version of Android P can start using the emoji right now.
- Scroll down for a list of phones that support the emoji, and how you can get on the beta.
Android is the first major platform on the internet to support ginger emoji - and people with the newest devices can download and start using them right now.
Ginger emoji, along with other characters including bagels, cupcakes, superheroes, and llamas, technically launched on Tuesday when Unicode 11.0 went live.
But they aren't available for everyday use until the various platforms that host emoji update their systems to support the new characters.
On Wednesday, Android became the first platform to support the new emojis. In an email to Business Insider, a Google spokeswoman confirmed that users of beta Android builds could start accessing and using the symbols immediately.
No other major platform has yet announced support, making Google the first. In the process, it is stealing a march on the likes of Twitter and Facebook, which have traditionally been quicker to update.
Google shared designs for a few of the emoji with Business Insider in the following image:
According to Google, the Unicode 11.0 emojis are available on any of the devices which support Android P Beta, which can be downloaded here.
They are:
- Essential Phone
- Google Pixel 2
- Google Pixel 2 XL
- Google Pixel
- Google Pixel XL
- Nokia 7 plus
- OnePlus 6
- Oppo R15 Pro
- Sony Xperia X22
- Vivo X21UD
- Vivo X21
- Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
They will be available to everyone else on Android when Android P's main update starts rolling out, which Google said is "later this summer."
Business Insider has contacted other major emoji platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Apple, and EmojiOne (which provides emojis for platforms like Slack and Dropbox), but none have responded with any concrete plans to support them.