Apple to replace revolver with water pistol emoji when iOS 10 rolls out

Apple is replacing its menacing handgun emoji with a green water pistol as the gun violence continues to cast an ominous shadow in the US, including the killing of two black men by police and the resulting spate of deadly attacks against officers.

The swap will come when Apple rolls out its new operating system - iOS 10 - and will be among a number of updated emojis on offer, including occupational emojis now available in female versions (such as a female weightlifter and female engineer) and new family configurations.

The new green and orange emoji, with a white plastic trigger, looks distinctly like a harmless toy and will replace the black and silver revolver.

In a statement that did not directly address the replacement of the gun, Apple said the update included “beautiful redesigns of popular emoji”.The statement said Apple worked with Unicode Consortium, the organization that handles the character standard, on the update to ensure that emoji reflected the diversity of its users.

Many gun control advocates are hailing the symbolic move as a step forward. New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, a non-profit organization, ran a Disarm the iPhone campaign targeting the pistol emoji. The organization's Executive Director Leah Barrett says that Apple's move shows it is standing up to the gun industry. "There are much more life-affirming ways to express oneself than with a gun," she said.

But then, there are many others who find the move inappropriate and absurd.

Say goodbye to this ><<< emoji. Like that's gonna solve anything https://t.co/OjkfbUFQ7w

— jseth (@jseths) August 1, 2016

According to Shiv Putcha, associate director of consumer mobility and telecoms at market intelligence firm IDC Asia-Pacific, tech companies could no longer afford to be apolitical."I see the green water pistol as Apple's innovative but telling way of announcing their position on a hot-button political issue," he said.

This is not the first time the company has taken action against gun violence. Many reports say that since 2015 Apple's App Store has rejected games that use previews depicting gun violence. Also, Apple is not the only tech giant apparently making a stand on the gun control issue. Uber, the ride-hailing app, bans drivers from carrying guns while on the job under its Firearm Prohibition Policy, while Google does not approve the promotion of firearms under its advertising policy.