Apple is making the mask Emoji look happier during the pandemic

Apple is giving the mask-wearing Emoji a slight facelift.

The symbol that has long been used to imply illness has taken on a new meaning in 2020 with the pandemic pushing people to wear face coverings for safety reasons.

Now, Apple has plans to tweak the little character, making it look as if it’s happy to be wearing a face covering, according to the emoji search engine Emojipedia. For those who are unfamiliar, the yellow emoticon currently has downturned eyes and wears a white mask.

A new version of the mask Emoji is coming out with the next iOS update, according to Emojipedia. And the updated Emoji will get eyebrows and rosy cheeks to imply that it’s smiling under the mask.

In fact, it looks just like Apple’s current “Smiling Face” Emoji, but with a face mask slapped on top of it.

The Emoji’s official name is “Face with Medical Mask” and it was added to iPhone iOS in 2008. Apple’s move to alter the symbol follows Samsung, which gave its users a happier face mask emoji in March.

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