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Google Fixes Offensive Cheeseburger Emoji

There's something really wrong with the Web giant's cheeseburger emoji, and the Internet is not happy about it.

Angela Moscaritolo
 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

Our team tests, rates, and reviews more than 1,500 products each year to help you make better buying decisions and get more from technology.

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UPDATE (11/29): Google has righted a serious wrong.

The Web giant has redesigned its controversial cheeseburger emoji, placing the cheese on top of the patty, where it ought to have been in the first place. Until now, Google had the cheese placed below the patty. The new cheeseburger emoji is available as part of the final Android 8.1 developer preview, which dropped Monday, according to Emojipedia.

Android 8.1 is slated to roll out to consumers in December, so it won't be long before this unfortunate controversy is officially in our rearview.

Android 8.1 also includes another notable emoji change. The two-beer emoji (a single stein and two steins clinking) will be filled to the top of the glass, according to Emojipedia. Currently, the beer mugs are half full with foam flowing over the top, which is just as ludacris and almost as offensive as the incorrect cheeseburger emoji.

Original Story (10/30):
Important question, internet: When you make a cheeseburger, where do you put the cheese? We can all pretty much agree that the cheese belongs on top of the burger, correct?

Well, someone over at Google seems to think otherwise. As Twitter user Thomas Baekdal pointed out over the weekend, there's something really wrong with the web giant's cheeseburger emoji: Google has the cheese sitting right on top of the bottom bun, underneath the patty.

And that's just the wrong way to do it. Period.

Apple's rival cheeseburger emoji gets the order correct, placing the gooey yellow stuff directly on top of the meat, where it belongs. According to Emojipedia, Microsoft, Facebook, and Samsung all get the order right, too — as do LG, HTC, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, and Mozilla.

Now, Google CEO Sundar Pichai has promised to make things right.

Responses to Pichai's tweet indicate most people agree: the cheese unequivocally belongs on top of the patty. Tell us in the comments below: where do you stand on this controversy?

The controversy comes after Google recently spent more than a year redesigning every one of the hundreds of emoji it offers in an attempt to make more of its users happy and replace its old blob-shaped characters, which previously appeared everywhere from Hangouts conversations to the Android keyboard.

Now, Google's emoji more closely resemble the characters you currently see on other platforms — classic emoji like smiley faces, for instance, are circular. And soon, hopefully Google will right its cheeseburger wrong.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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