Decentralized social network Mastodon releases its own Android app

Mastodon has released its own app with which the open source social media platform can be used on Android. Third-party apps already existed and there was already an official iOS app. The makers want to offer a ‘smooth experience’ with their own apps and be easy to find.

With the arrival of the Android app, the interface of the iOS app has also been renewed. The makers have put a lot of care and resources into the development of the apps, “to counteract the stigma that open source projects do not prioritize ease of use and visual design”. Mastodon says he worked together with interface designers who have previously worked on major commercial social networks.

Mastodon’s official apps don’t show the federated timeline. That is a chronological timeline showing all new posts on the social network. According to the makers, showing this to everyone poses too much risk of spam and abuse. Also the local timeline, with all new messages from a certain server, is missing. Instead, the apps have an Explore tab, which shows popular posts.

Among other things, extra attention has been paid to the process of registering new users. This is different from other social networks, because users have to choose a specific server. When registering, users are presented with a list of public servers to choose from. Servers that can only be accessed with a moderator’s approval are hidden because, according to Mastodon, this prevents new users from coming back if they can’t get started right away. After choosing a server, users are first shown the house rules. This is followed by the process of registering by means of an e-mail address and username.

Mastodon is an open source and decentralized social network that has been in existence since 2016. The source code of the official apps for Android and iOS is on github.

Update, 11.18 am: The official iOS app has been around for some time. The article has been adapted accordingly.