Discord on Android adds WhatsApp-like QR login and contacts syncing

Contact syncing via your phonebook will come at a future date.

What you need to know

• The Discord app on Android is getting a couple of features aimed at making it more like its mobile messaging rivals.
• You can now log in to the desktop client or the web app by simply scanning a QR code on your phone.
• The company is also working on a feature that would allow you to add people in your phonebook to Discord.

If can't frag players on the PC, you could still hop into the party bus on your phone, thanks to the Fortnite app on Android. However, you'll need to keep the lines of communication with your party open to really shine and get the W: that's where Discord comes in, one of the most popular apps for gamers the world over. And the service's Android app is becoming even better, thanks to two quality of life improvements.

The first, which is already functional, allows for logins on your PC or the Discord web app by simply scanning a QR code on your phone. If you're already logged in on your phone, you can also log in to the PC by heading over to the app's setting's — accessible by pulling out the hamburger menu on the left and pressing the cog icon next to your nickname and tag — and then choosing the 'Scan QR Code' option under User Settings.

On the PC or the web app, the login screen should display a QR code by default following Discord's server-side updates, so all you need to do is scan the QR code on the screen, and you should be good to go. If that sounds familiar, that's because it's exactly how the desktop and web apps for WhatsApp work.

In addition, having dug through the app's code, the folks over at XDA Developers have discovered that Discord engineers are working on another feature that's been a staple of the WhatsApp experience for a while now: contact syncing via your phonebook. Dubbed 'Friend Sync' by Discord, the feature will require you to verify your phone number with the app first. That's definitely a good thing since it means your contacts likely won't be accessed by the app unless you actually want the feature.

Once that's done, Discord will scan your phonebook for numbers registered with other Discord accounts and offer you the option to add them to your friend's list with a single tap. To ensure users' privacy, the feature will only work if both users have each other's number's in their contacts list and both have turned FriendSync on. It'll also inform you if someone in your contacts creates a new Discord account, much like how Telegram works. Take the news with a grain of salt though; since it depends on an APK teardown and has not been officially confirmed by Discord, it is possible that the feature may be pulled before a public release.

The Discord app on Android now offers a hidden AMOLED dark theme