It's certainly one of the more under-utilised emojis out there, but the 'Mask' icon is finding a second wind during the coronavirus pandemic.
You might've glanced over it quickly in the past, but the 'Face with Medical Mask" emoji is easily the most relatable one out there at the moment.
Regardless of whether or not you've noticed it, the icon has now been upgraded, in a manner of speaking.
Apple seems to want to make it appear more positive, adding a cheerful smile and expression, perhaps to illustrate that wearing a mask is not something to feel bad or down about.
You'll be able to start using this new and improved mask emoji on Apple's new iOS update 14.2 when it fully releases later this month or early November.
We recently got a look at over 100 new emojis being added in the update, which is currently in beta testing, which includes a transgender flag and gender-neutral icons to better represent inclusivity.
Before being re-worked, the mask emoji had something of a sad look about it – downturned eyes and a noticeable air of being down in the dumps – but this new and improved version is looking on the positive side.
The new happy eyes seem to indicate that there's a big ol' smile going on underneath that mask.
Thanks to Emojipedia, we can get a look at the two icons side-by-side to see the difference Apple has made for its overall look.
As you can see, it's a much happier icon now.
Since we can't actually see the smile since it's more implied than anything else, you might wonder if the new emoji is actually sporting a smile under the mask.
Emojipedia has once again stepped in here to show that the new icon has the exact same expression that Apple's current 'Smiling Face' emoji uses, just covered with a mask.
Back in March, Samsung got ahead of the curve here and replaced its own mask-wearing icon with a smiling alternative.
Also coming in Apple's new emoji update is a fly, a beaver, a gender-inclusive Santa, a man wearing a bridal veil and much, much more.
