Ultratext is the easiest way to create and share fun GIFs on the iPhone

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Ultratext gif

I only recently got into the world of animated GIF memes, and that’s mainly thanks to a group of friends that like to inundate my iMessage with random stuff 24/7. Like any good millennial, I have some of my favorite GIFs saved in my Camera Roll to whip out at an appropriate time in a conversation.

Then there’s the world of making my own GIFs, which I have never had the slightest inclination to dabble in until I stumbled onto Ultratext, a relatively new app for the iPhone. After showing it to my techie and non-techie friends alike, it’s safe to say that Ultratext is the easiest and most fun way to create GIFs and share them in a matter of seconds.

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It works like this: you enter text for each frame of the GIF separated by spaces, and there’s the option to add photos from your camera throughout the process. At first glance the interface looks a little weird, but you pick up on how to use the app super quickly.

While the app will automatically mix colors as you go, you can tap on each frame to change the color or choose from a palette for the text and background. The end result can look like this:

GIFs you make can also be shared to Instagram, Facebook, Vimeo, or email. When someone gets your text with a GIF in iMessage, only the first frame of the GIF is displayed in Notification Center.

(Pro tip: since you have access to iOS’s full keyboard system when typing out a GIF, don’t forget to throw in some emoticons!)

The only annoying thing about the app right now is that it includes a “Made with…” chunk of text with a link to the App Store when it automatically pastes a GIF into Messages. But that can be easily removed manually. The app’s creators told TechCrunch that they’ll let users get rid of the autofill with a $1 in-app purchase.

Ultratext is free in the App Store, and it’s a fun way to take your messages to the next level.

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