On Wednesday, Twitter unveiled a new design that includes a new font, called Chirp, and higher-contrast colors. “Almost immediately, users began to complain — with many saying the new font gave them headaches,” reports CNET. From the report: “Today, we released a few changes to the way Twitter looks on the web and on your phone,” a tweet from Twitter Design reads. “While it might feel weird at first, these updates make us more accessible, unique, and focused on you and what you’re talking about.” Twitter’s Derrit DeRouen posted an entire thread about why the company felt a need to develop its own typeface, writing that, “for everyday use it must be sharp and legible (with good density), but with personality and distinctiveness.”
But some found Chirp harder to read. “PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let us change the font back,” said one Twitter user. “It’s incredibly difficult for me to read with, and it physically hurts to look at it.” Said another, “It looks like the letters are doing the wave, I hate it.” A number of Twitter users made the same point: The new font is giving them headaches. “The new Twitter font has cured my addiction to this bird app because i actually can’t scroll without getting a headache now,” wrote one user. “Read tweets with Twitter’s new font and get a headache,” one person wrote. “Then maybe you’ll close your eyes out of frustration and eventually fall asleep.” A Twitter spokesperson told CNET, “We tested the font and found that while it does take people a little time to get used to it, overall they like the change. We’re listening to feedback about the font and will continue to improve it.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.