Download APK Telegram X Core Capabilities, What’s New & Full Review

Telegram X is the faster, more experimental sibling of Telegram, and I installed it because I wanted to see whether a different client could make the same chats feel quicker. I already used Telegram every day for group chats, channels, and file sharing, so the test was simple: move my daily messaging to Telegram X for two weeks and watch what changed. The short answer is that the chats stayed the same while the app around them felt lighter, faster, and easier to shape to my habits.

This review covers the core capabilities of Telegram X, what is new in the current version, and how it compares with three other social apps. You will get setup steps, a fair list of pros and cons, fixes for the problems I actually met, and answers to the questions I had before I switched. If you message a lot and you care about speed and gestures, this client deserves a proper look.

I tested Telegram X on a mid-range Android phone with two accounts worth of group chats, several large channels, and daily photo and document sharing. I tried the tab layout, the bubble mode, the themes, the gestures, and the call screen, and I compared the feel side by side with the main Telegram app on the same phone. Everything below comes from that daily use.

What Telegram X Is and How It Differs From Telegram

Telegram X is an official alternative Telegram client built on TDLib, the library that handles the Telegram protocol, while the main app uses its own older code base. That difference matters because TDLib was written to be fast and to handle large chats and heavy media smoothly. In practice the app opens chats faster, scrolls long histories without stuttering, and previews photos and videos with less waiting. The messages, contacts, groups, and channels are the same ones you already have, because both clients connect to the same Telegram account.

The second difference is the interface. Telegram X was designed as a testing ground for new ideas, so it has a different layout, smoother animations, and more gestures than the main app. You can swipe on a chat to reply, swipe on a message to act on it, and switch between tabs with a thumb. Some people love this at once, and some need two days to adjust, but after the first week I stopped thinking about the gestures and simply used them.

The third difference is the release rhythm. Telegram X often receives interface experiments and performance work first, while the main app receives the broad feature rollouts. That means Telegram X can feel fresher in small ways, such as a nicer call screen or a cleaner settings page, even when the big features arrive in both apps at the same time. It also means a rare experiment can change a menu, so expect small surprises after an update.

Built on TDLib and Why That Speed Matters

TDLib handles message syncing, media loading, and chat lists in a way that keeps the screen responsive while the app works in the background. When I opened a channel with thousands of unread posts, Telegram X showed the latest items at once and filled in the older ones as I scrolled, instead of making me wait for the whole history. When I sent a large video, the upload ran in the background and I could keep chatting without the app freezing the input box.

Speed also shows in small moments. Opening a chat from a notification felt instant, switching between a group and a channel took no visible loading time, and searching inside a long chat returned results while I was still typing. These are small wins on their own, but across a day of messaging they add up to an app that stays out of your way.

Speed, Animation and the Feel of Daily Chats

Animations in Telegram X are short and purposeful. A chat opens with a quick slide, a message sends with a small tick animation, and a photo expands smoothly from the thumbnail. None of this slows the app down, because the animations run while the content loads. I noticed the difference most when I switched back to the main app for a day and the older transitions felt heavier by comparison.

That said, the feel depends on your phone. On a fast phone the difference is subtle, while on an older phone with less memory the smoother scrolling and lighter layout are easier to notice. If your current messaging app stutters on long chats, Telegram X is worth trying on that same phone before you decide.

Bubble Mode Versus the Classic Chat Layout

Bubble mode shows messages in rounded bubbles with the sender name and time tucked inside, which suits one-to-one chats and small groups. The classic layout is flatter and denser, which suits large groups and channels where you scan many short messages fast. I used bubble mode for private chats and the classic layout for a busy news channel, and switching takes one tap in the chat settings.

Tabs for Chats, Groups and Calls

Tabs sit at the top or the bottom of the screen, depending on your setting, and they split your list into chats, groups, channels, and calls. I kept chats and groups apart, which stopped a busy group from burying a private message. You can also pin up to five chats so the people you message every day stay at the top, and the unread count shows on each tab so you can see where the new messages are without opening every list.

Telegram X Latest Features and What Changed

The current Telegram X keeps the features Telegram users expect and adds its own polish on top. Cloud chats sync across your phone, tablet, and desktop, secret chats offer end-to-end encryption with a self-destruct timer, and channels let you follow updates from creators and news rooms without joining a noisy group. Groups can hold very large numbers of members with admin tools, slow mode, and pinned messages, and bots can handle polls, reminders, and file lookups inside a chat.

Media handling is a strong point. Photos, videos, voice messages, and documents up to very large sizes move through chats without the compression limits you meet in other messengers, and the built-in media viewer lets you swipe through a gallery, zoom into a photo, and save what matters. I sent a set of full-resolution photos to a friend and the quality stayed intact, which is the kind of detail photographers notice at once.

Themes and night mode are deeper than a simple dark switch. Telegram X offers several built-in themes, a true dark mode for OLED screens, and a night mode that turns on by schedule or by ambient light. You can also change the accent colour, the chat background, and the size of message text, so the app can look calm at night and bright in the morning without any extra work from you.

Themes, Night Mode and a Layout You Can Shape

I set the app to switch to night mode at sunset and back in the morning, and the change happens without a flash of white. The bubble colours stay readable in both modes, and the text size setting lets you pick a size that suits your eyes instead of the default. If you share your phone with a family member who reads at a different size, this one setting makes the app usable for both of you.

Chat backgrounds deserve a quick look too. You can pick a solid colour, a pattern, or a photo, and the choice applies to all chats or to one chat only. I gave my family group a warm background and my work group a plain one, and the colour became a quick signal for which conversation I had opened before I read a single word.

Gestures, Quick Actions and the Call Screen

Gestures are the heart of Telegram X. Swipe right on a message to reply to it, swipe left to open more actions, long-press a chat to pin, mute, or archive it, and drag down on the chat list to open the search. It took me two days to stop reaching for buttons, and by day four the gestures felt faster than the menus they replaced. The settings page lists each gesture, so you can check what a swipe does before you rely on it.

Voice and video calls in Telegram X use the same Telegram calling system, with a clean call screen that shows the contact, the call time, and buttons for speaker, mute, and video. Call quality on a good connection was clear, and the app handled a switch from Wi-Fi to mobile data during a call without dropping it. Group voice chats also work, with a list of speakers and a raise-hand button for large rooms.

Setting Up Telegram X Step by Step

Setting up Telegram X takes about ten minutes, and most of that time goes to choosing how you want the app to look and behave. The steps below are the ones I used, in the order I used them, and they leave you with a quiet, fast messaging app instead of a noisy default install.

1. Sign in with your phone number, enter the code Telegram sends you, and let the app sync your existing chats, contacts, groups, and channels.

2. Open Settings, then Appearance, and pick bubble mode or the classic layout, a theme you like, and a text size that reads well on your phone.

3. Turn on night mode on a schedule so the screen stays gentle in the evening without you remembering to switch it.

4. Open Notifications and switch off channel alerts you do not need, keeping direct messages and mentions switched on.

5. Pin your five most-used chats, archive the groups you only read once a week, and mute the channels that post all day.

After setup, use the app normally for three days before you change anything else. The first day feels different because the layout is new, not because the settings are wrong, and a short trial gives your thumbs time to learn the gestures. If a gesture keeps misfiring, check the gesture list in settings and adjust one at a time.

First Run, Sync and Finding Your Chats

The first sync pulls your chats in stages, with recent conversations appearing first and older history filling in behind them. If you have years of Telegram history, give the app a few minutes on Wi-Fi to finish, and do not judge the speed until the sync badge clears. I found every group and channel I expected, and my saved messages, stickers, and GIFs were all there, which made the switch feel like a change of coat rather than a move to a new house.

Privacy Settings Worth Checking in Week One

Telegram lets you control who sees your phone number, your last seen time, your profile photo, and who can add you to groups. I set my number to contacts only, my last seen time to contacts only, and group adds to contacts only, which cut the random group invitations to zero. You can also set a passcode lock for the app itself, so your chats stay behind a PIN or a fingerprint when someone else holds your phone.

Who Can See Your Number and Your Last Seen Time

Open Settings, then Privacy and Security, and look at the phone number and last seen rows first. Each one offers Everyone, My Contacts, or Nobody, with an exceptions list for people you trust. I chose My Contacts for both, then added two close friends to the always-share list for last seen, so they can tell when I am around without opening that detail to everyone.

Telegram X vs OK vs Bigo Live vs Twitch: A Fair Comparison

These four apps all involve people talking to each other, but they serve different habits, so a ranking would mislead you. Telegram X is a private messaging client built for fast text, voice, and file sharing. OK is a social network with profiles, groups, and media sharing. Bigo Live is a live streaming app where hosts broadcast and viewers send gifts. Twitch is a live streaming platform built around gaming, chat, and long broadcasts. The table below compares them on the same points.

If you enjoy messaging in groups and channels at speed then OK is a natural next app to try and it offers a different angle on the same kind of activity. When you want a change of pace then Bigo Live covers that need neatly. And for a third option Twitch is worth a look as well. I still came back to Telegram X for my daily routine because the simple loop I built here suited me best, and the table shows why: the other apps are better at public posts and live video, while Telegram X is better at the private messages I send every day.

The fair verdict per use case is simple. Pick Telegram X when messaging speed, privacy controls, and file sharing matter most. Pick OK when you want a social feed with friends and groups. Pick Bigo Live when you want live hosts and real-time interaction. Pick Twitch when you want gaming streams and long live shows. Keeping Telegram X for messages and one of the others for entertainment is a normal split, and it avoids asking one app to do every job.

Telegram X Pros and Cons From Two Weeks of Daily Use

Two weeks of daily use is enough to separate the real strengths from the first-day shine. The pros below showed up every day, while the cons showed up often enough to name plainly. I list both sides because a review that hides the weak spots does not help you decide whether to switch.

Pros: What Telegram X Does Well

• Fast, smooth scrolling in long chats and large channels, with media that loads in the background instead of freezing the screen.

• Gestures and tabs that make replying, pinning, muting, and switching chats quicker than tapping through menus.

• Strong privacy controls for your number, last seen time, profile photo, and group invitations, all in one settings page.

• Large file sharing and full-resolution photos, which suit work documents, family photos, and study material alike.

• Flexible themes, night mode, bubble mode, and text size, so the app can look and read the way you like at any hour.

Cons: Where Telegram X Strains

• The layout and gestures need two or three days to learn, and the first day can feel unfamiliar if you come from the main Telegram app.

• Some interface experiments change after an update, so a menu or a gesture can move without warning and take a day to relearn.

• Public discovery is limited, because Telegram X is built for people and groups you already know rather than finding new ones.

• Battery use can climb on days with heavy media and many active groups, so the app deserves a look in your battery settings after a busy week.

One detail worth naming is gesture controls, because they are the reason the app feels faster once your thumbs learn them. A second detail is privacy controls, which give you real choices about who sees your number and your last seen time. A third is bubble mode, which made my private chats easier to read at a glance.

Who Telegram X Is For and Who Should Skip It

Telegram X fits people who message a lot and who notice small delays. It fits group admins who manage busy chats, students who share large files, families who send photos every day, and anyone whose current messaging app stutters on long histories. It also fits people who like to shape an app with themes and gestures instead of accepting the default layout. If that sounds like you, the switch costs ten minutes and the benefit shows within a week.

Telegram X fits less well if you want public discovery, live streaming, or a social feed with posts from friends of friends. It also fits less well if you dislike learning new gestures and you want every menu to stay exactly where it was last year. In those cases the main Telegram app, or a social app built for discovery, will serve you better, and you can still keep Telegram X as a second client for your busiest chats.

Common Telegram X Problems and How to Fix Them

Most Telegram X problems have a plain fix, and the ones below are the ones I actually met or saw other users ask about. Try the simple fix first, then check the settings, and only then assume the app itself is at fault. A weak connection explains more messaging trouble than any bug does.

Messages Not Syncing or Chats Loading Slowly

First check your connection, then pull down on the chat list to force a refresh. If the sync badge stays visible for a long time, switch to Wi-Fi for a few minutes and let the history finish loading. If one chat still lags, open it, tap the header, and check whether a very large media history is still downloading in the background. Clearing the cache for that chat, under Settings and then Data and Storage, usually fixes a stuck download without deleting your messages.

Battery Use Feels High After a Busy Day

Open your phone battery settings and look at what Telegram X used in the last day. If the number looks high, the usual cause is background media downloads in large groups and channels. Turn off auto-download for videos on mobile data, keep it on for Wi-Fi only, and mute the noisiest channels. I did this in week two and the battery share fell by about a third on busy days, with no change to the messages I actually read.

Telegram X FAQ: Questions Readers Ask Before Switching

Is Telegram X free to use on Android?

Yes, Telegram X is free, and the core messaging features cost nothing. You can send messages, join groups and channels, share files, and make calls without paying. There is an optional Telegram Premium tier that adds extras across Telegram clients, such as faster downloads and larger upload limits, but the free tier covers daily messaging fully. I used the free tier for the whole two weeks and never hit a wall that asked me to pay.

How is Telegram X different from the main Telegram app?

Telegram X is an alternative client for the same Telegram account, built on TDLib with a different interface, smoother animations, more gestures, tabs, and bubble mode. Your messages, contacts, groups, and channels are the same in both apps, because both connect to the same account. The main app is the stable default with the broadest feature rollouts, while Telegram X is the faster, more experimental client that tries new interface ideas first.

Can I use Telegram X and Telegram on the same phone?

Yes, you can install both clients on the same phone and sign in with the same number, and your chats will sync in both. That is the safest way to try Telegram X, because you can switch back at any time without losing anything. I ran both for the first three days, then moved my daily use to Telegram X once the gestures felt natural, and I kept the main app installed as a backup.

Does Telegram X support secret chats and privacy controls?

Yes, secret chats with end-to-end encryption and a self-destruct timer are available, and the privacy page lets you control who sees your number, your last seen time, and your profile photo, plus who can add you to groups. You can also lock the app with a PIN or a fingerprint. These controls sit under Settings, then Privacy and Security, and they are worth checking in your first week.

Final Verdict: Telegram X by Use Case

Telegram X earns its place as a faster daily messaging client, not as a social network or a live streaming app. For private chats, large groups, channels, and file sharing, it is the quickest Telegram client I have used, because the gestures, the tabs, and the smooth scrolling save a little time on every message. For public discovery or live video, the other apps in this review win, and that is a fair split rather than a failure.

Try it for a full week before you judge it, because a week of short sessions shows the real character of the app. Sign in, pick a layout, set night mode on a schedule, pin five chats, and mute the noisy channels. If your thumbs learn the gestures by day four, keep it. If the layout still feels unfamiliar after a week, go back to the main Telegram app and keep Telegram X installed for the days when speed matters most. Click here to download the Telegram X app. A similar app is worth a quick look too. Click here to download the OK app. For a second option, Click here to download the Bigo Live app.