These bots can take screenshots, save threads, and much more.
By
David Nield
|
Published Aug 30, 2022 5: 00 PM
You do the tweeting. Let the bots do the rest. Nathan Dumlao / Unsplash
When you think about Twitter bots, the first thing that might come to mind is automated accounts spawned by shadowy agencies to cause disruption or spread misinformation across the network.
But there are lots of bots—they’re not all necessarily bad and they can be pretty useful, too. Yes, they’re automated and scripted, but they can have specific purposes, such as downloading a video from a tweet or collecting threads together for easy reading.
Enlist the help of a few good bots and you’ll find they can seriously enhance your Twitter experience, adding functions and features that are missing from the native app. All you need to do to summon them is mention the bot account handle in a tweet.
Take a screenshot with @pikaso_me
Sometimes you want a screenshot of a tweet—maybe to save the receipt forever or share it with others—and that’s where @pikaso_me comes in. Reply to any tweet with @pikaso_me screenshot this and you’ll get a nicely cropped and formatted screenshot. It’s free to use, but you can pay €9.99 (about $10) a month to remove the watermark.
Make threads easier to read with @threadreaderapp
Tweet threads can be useful when users want to share longer stories and engage in discussions. But threads can get complicated, especially when there’s a long line of tweets ahead. To make things easier to follow, you can use @threadreaderapp.
Set reminders to go back to tweets with @RemindMe_OfThis
If you want a reminder to go back to a tweet at a later date, use @RemindMe_OfThis. Summon the bot by replying to the tweet in question with @RemindMe_OfThis and a time period—next month, in 4 days, tomorrow night, or a specific date. When the period has elapsed or the date has come, you’ll get a tweeted reminder. The bot is free, but you can offer a donation.
Colorize black and white images with @colorize_bot
If you’ve got a black and white image you need colorizing, tweet it to @colorize_bot. The bot uses a vast database of images, and artificial intelligence to add color to photos. The results can be hugely impressive. This bot is free to use, but you can send a donation to support its running costs.
Create enhanced screenshots with @poet_this
We’ve covered one screenshot tool above, but the brilliant @poet_this goes a bit further in terms of screenshot formatting. You can choose from four colored themes, change the shape of the screenshot, and hide the likes and retweets. You’ll need to tweet a specific command to get what you want, but instructions are easy to follow. The bot is free to use, but you can support the developer with a donation if you want.
Download videos from tweets with @SaveVidBot
The @SaveVidBot has a useful function on Twitter: Saving videos in tweets so you can keep them forever or share them somewhere else. Just reply to a tweet with a video by tagging @SaveVidBot, and you’ll get a download link to the footage in the standard MP4 format. This bot is free to use.
Twitter’s built-in options for viewing quoted replies are a bit clunky, but @quotedreplies can help. Tag the account in any tweet, and the bot will give you a link that will redirect you to the Twitter page for all the matching quoted replies, which you can sort by popularity or in chronolog