WordPress is all set to make its first major release of 2020 - WordPress 5.4. And this time, WordPress comes with new features and more customization capabilities than ever before. So how soon can you expect to get the latest update for our website? WordPress 5.4 will be released on March 31, 2020.
Most of the new features revolve around the block editor and its improvements in this update. The blocks are more customizable and more comfortable to handle in the latest version. WordPress 5.4 is now available for beta testing. You can give it a try either on your computer or in a testing environment using the WordPress Beta Tester Plugin.
Now, you should also be informed that all the features present in the beta version may not make it to the final version. Similarly, there may be new features added to the final version when it is released.
In this article, we tell you everything you need to know about the new WordPress 5.4. After working on the Beta version ourselves, we are sharing with you our favorite features on the new WordPress 5.4.
Customizable Social Icons Block
WordPress 5.4 lets you add Social Icons Block practically anywhere on a page/post. It’s a lot more flexible and allows you to position it as you wish. The Social Icons Block also lets you edit each button separately. The block comes with 3 designs which are default, logos only, & pill-shaped. In addition to this, you can provide a link to your social media page with just a click on the icons.
Customizable Buttons Block
The Buttons Block in WordPress 5.4 replaces the Button Block in the older versions. More features are included in the new block to customize the buttons. With the new buttons block, you can now add more than one button side by side. The new block also allows various customization options like solid & gradient versions for buttons. You can even choose between linear or radial gradients for the buttons.
In WordPress 5.4, you won’t be able to insert a button block outside the buttons block. However, there is no reason to worry as your old button blocks will keep functioning as usual. Along with these additions, an updated button component allows you to change the button size more easily than before
Welcome Guide Modal
The new WordPress 5.4 comes with a new Guide component. The welcome guide is more like a user-guide for new users that introduces them to the block editor. The guide provides a short description of the block editor. There is also a link to the page containing information about the WordPress Editor. If necessary, you can also relaunch the guide from the menu.
Color Customization for Blocks
WordPress 5.4 supports color customization options for cover, column, and group blocks. The color customization includes the capability to choose the background color as well as the text color. And this could be done for all the blocks inside a group block at once.
Another one of the customizations that we liked was the capability to change the color of just parts of a text in a block. For example, instead of writing “COLOR ME BLUE,” we can now write “COLOR ME BLUE.” In the previous version, you could not do that as you could only change the color of the entire paragraph of the block.
Easier Drag-and-Drop Feature
WordPress has really worked on better the user experience on its platform on the new WordPress 5.s. It is evident from features like the Easier Drag-and-Drop in the featured image section, which is absent in the older versions.
The target or the drag box is bigger, which means that it is easier to drag and drop files in WordPress 5.4.
Improved Gallery Block
The Gallery Block of the WordPress 5.4 has also received a revamp. With the new WordPress 5.4, it is much easier to adjust and move images. Changing the size of an image is no longer a hassle with WordPress 5.4, you can easily choose a size for all images in the gallery. You can also add a caption for the images without any character limits. Most importantly, it is much easier to move the blocks around without compromising the page alignment.
New Navigation Tools and Easy Navigation Menu
It is no secret that navigating through blocks in WordPress can be painstaking at times or even most times. WordPress 5.4 introduces a navigation tool, which makes the task of navigating through blocks much easier. Using the navigation tool, you can scroll through your page seamlessly, and by just clicking on the block again, the tool automatically switches to the editing tool. This makes editing your pages significantly easier and streamlines the whole process.
WordPress 5.4 also makes it easier to handle different types of contents, like images & texts. With the new update, you can access and change dimensions & position around the image block using the column menu.
WordPress also made it a point to take into account the mobile version when it comes to navigation. The mobile version now has a floating toolbar at the top, which modifies according to the type of block you are working on. Perhaps one of the most useful updates in the new WordPress 5.4 is that it lets you select & move multiple blocks effortlessly. WordPress 5.4 is the update you were waiting for if the WordPress navigation ever got on your nerves.
Improved Latest Posts Block
The “Latest Posts Block” in WordPress 5.4 has also been given some improvements. It is now possible to display featured images in the latest posts block. In addition to this, now you can pick the image size, dimensions, percentage, and even alignment. WordPress 5.4 also provides the option to enable post meta settings as well as post content settings.
Lazy-Loading to All Images
The new WordPress 5.4 will also support lazy-loading to all images. Lazy-loading, as you might know, is the feature by which the site waits until the user’s browser viewport is at a specific position before loading the image. Lazy -loading can be handy to increase the speed and enhance the user experience.
Additional Features
The changes in the new WordPress 5.4 doesn’t stop here. Many other features and improvements have also been added to it. One of the interesting features of WordPress 5.4 is an embed block that allows you to add TikTok videos to your pages & posts. With the social media platform TikTok gaining popularity fast, this feature could hold great potential for the future.
The editor in WordPress 5.4 opens in fullscreen mode by default. This happens because it is a local setting and it gets reset along with your preferences. It is likely that the settings will be stored in the WordPress database in future releases.
Apart from this, there are changes related to the calendar widget markup, visual improvements to the Privacy Tools Table, and other such improvements.
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