Someone sends you a talking cartoon fox that blinks and nods exactly like their own face.
If you have wondered how they did that, it is an Animoji, and it is built into your iPhone already.
I first wrote this when Animoji were brand new and still sitting in a beta version of iOS.
They are ordinary now, they have grown a lot, and they are no longer stuck inside Messages.
What are Animoji?
Animoji is short for animated emoji.
Your iPhone reads your face and puts your expression onto a character.
You talk, smile, frown, wink or shake your head, and the character does the same.
It even catches your tongue when you stick it out at all those people who deserve it, ha-ha.
Any iPhone that unlocks with your face can record one.
How do I send one?
Open Messages and start a chat.
Tap the plus (+) button next to the text box and look for Stickers.
Pick your character, tap record, say your line, then send it.
It really is that simple.
What are Memoji?
A Memoji is nothing but an Animoji of you.
Skin tone, hairstyle, glasses, eyes, nose, lips, even earrings can be changed until it looks like the person in the mirror.
That is me on the left.
Everything else works exactly like an Animoji.
How do I make my own?
Open that same sticker section in Messages and tap the plus (+) sign to start a new Memoji.
Start picking features until it looks like you, or build a complete alter ego instead.
Tap Done and it joins your list of characters.
What has changed since then?
The big one is that Memoji left Messages.
Your Memoji stickers now live in the emoji keyboard, so you can use them in WhatsApp, Instagram, Gmail, anywhere you can type.
The same face also works as your contact photo, as an Apple Watch face, and live during a FaceTime call.
If your iPhone supports Apple Intelligence, you can go one step further and describe an emoji that does not exist so it can be made for you.
Apple calls those Genmoji.
Things to Remember
- Recording an Animoji needs an iPhone that unlocks with your face.
- Everything starts from the plus (+) button next to the text box in Messages.
- Tap the plus (+) sign in the sticker area to build a new Memoji.
- Your Memoji stickers work in any app, not only Messages.
- Set your Memoji as your contact photo so friends see it when you call.