WhatsApp Rolls Out New Features For Video Calling

 WhatsApp has announced a slew of new features aimed specifically at improving users’ experience with video calling. The update actually brings a lot of features that were previously added to the app earlier this year for voice calls.

First up, you can now have up to 32 people on a video, four times the previous limit, if you’re feeling extra sociable. The increased limit was first introduced to voice calling alongside the Communities feature a few months back.

Large group calls now enable you to have more granular control over who you hear. WhatsApp says that when you long press on a participant, it will allow you to either mute them or message them separately without interrupting the ongoing video call.

iOS users are getting early access to a picture-in-picture tool for multitasking while you’re video calling. The company said that it’s currently in beta testing but the feature should be rolling out in the new year, though it’s unclear when Android users will get to use it.

Of course, there is the “call links” that were released back in September for both voice and video calls. The links provide a convenient method to let others join an ongoing call, though it still can’t replace video conferencing apps as it does not allow call scheduling.

In case you missed it, WhatsApp also launched a few other new features recently. Users can now officially customise their own avatars on the app, which will generate a 36-pack of stickers. In addition, an incredibly convenient feature called “Message Yourself” lets you use the app to message yourself as a makeshift notepad. In August, the Meta-owned platform unveiled the highly-requested ability to leave groups silently, with only admins being notified.

WhatsApp Avatar Is Now Official

The service might be late to the game when it comes to this particular feature but you are now able to create and utilize personalized avatars on WhatsApp. While it is only being officially revealed today, this particular feature has been in the works for a while.

A glimpse of it was first noticed by the biggest WhatsApp-centric site in the world, WABetaInfo back in June. Fast forward to October, certain beta testers of WhatsApp for Android version 2.22.23.9 have informed the site that they were finally able to set up their own avatar.

Once a user has configured his or her own WhatsApp avatar, the app will then create a pack of 36 custom stickers that are based on that very avatar. These stickers conveyed various actions and emotions that the user can utilize when they communicate with others on WhatsApp.

In addition to that, users can also set their avatar as a WhatApp profile photo. Do note that the visibility of the avatar profile photo followed the same privacy settings as per the existing profile photo which means you may want to tweak the profile photo’s visibility settings if you want to show it off to everyone.

As for its availability, WhatsApp said that it is being rolled out to users all over the globe starting today onwards. Since there is no exact timeline, the only way for you to know you are already able to create an avatar for your WhatsApp account is the appearance of the Avatar option inside the Settings section of the app.

Meta has already dabbled with this particular feature for Facebook and Messenger a few years ago. First launched in 2019, Facebook Avatars eventually made its way to Malaysia in September 2020 and it seemed rather natural that the company decided to implement a similar feature for WhatsApp as well.

WhatsApp Reportedly Adding Pause And Resume Functions To Voice Notes

WhatsApp is working on yet another new feature for its mobile app, this time on one that enhances the voice recording experience. On top of receiving new timestamp transcriptions (a new addition which we’ve covered previously), the in-app voice notes feature will reportedly be getting the ability to pause and resume a recording.

A preview from WABetaInfo shows that the voice note interface seems to be overhauled. Instead of the current UI where users are required to hold the record button and slide to cancel, it now features a new “Stop” button when a voice recording is being conducted.  This enables recordings to be paused and later stitched together as a single continuous track, which is quite useful as you won’t need to send multiple voice messages in case you need to stop in the middle of recording.

WABetaInfo claims that this feature is still under development, and that it will eventually be rolled out to both iOS and Android devices that are opted-in to their beta programme on Play Store and TestFlight. Since the preview obtained is based on the iOS version, it is possible that the feature will first come to iPhone betas before being rolled out on Android.

WhatsApp has been developing multiple new features for the platform, with some have already been released on the public beta – such as the multi-device function, which lets up to four devices use the same account without being connected to your phone. Other than that, there is also a feature that lets you choose a default length for the app’s disappearing messages feature.

WhatsApp Beta Rolls Out Default Disappearing Messages Update

A new feature is launching on WhatsApp beta that allows users to set all messages to disappear by default. The feature’s current iteration only allows users to turn on disappearing messages for individual chats and only gives the option of seven days.

This new rollout gives you more control over the privacy feature. For starters, there’s now a global timer for all chats, and that’s in addition to the ability to personalise the duration for individual threads. Instead of just seven days, WhatsApp is also adding options for 24 hours and 90 days.

The expanded message timer joins the View Once feature as part of the platform’s growing suite of privacy-focused tools. Be aware of course, that none of these measures prevent recipients from recording or taking a screenshot of the contents that you send and, unlike Snapchat, you have no way of knowing if they did.

The default disappearing messages is rolling out to iOS users on WhatsApp beta and WhatsApp Business beta. Unfortunately, Android beta users will have to be patient as the feature will only be released next week. With the latest beta, WhatsApp also unveiled larger and rounder chat bubbles.

Router Configuration Is Behind Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp Massive Downtime

Facebook has experienced a global-scale downtime late last night which also affected its subsidiaries including Instagram and WhatsApp.  Lasted for more than 6 hours, the company has provided some explanation a few hours after it manages to put back all of its services online again.

In a blog post by Facebook’s Vice President of Engineering and Infrastructure, Santosh Janardhan, the root cause behind the massive downtime was apparently due to some configuration changes that were performed on the company’s backbone routers. He pointed out that these routers were responsible for the traffic between Facebook’s data centres.

The changes somehow interrupted the traffic flow which then led to the global-scale downtime. Santosh was quick to point out that the company didn’t find any evidence that user data has been compromised during the incident.

In general, Santosh’s explanation is in line with what Facebook’s CTO, Mike Schroepfer said earlier that the company was experiencing networking issues. Nevertheless, the timing of the massive downtime is rather interesting though as it happened right before Facebook’s former product manager Frances Hauge, who leaked tons of documents to The Wall Street Journal is scheduled to testify in front of the U.S Congress regarding her time with the company.

WhatsApp Begins Testing In-App Local Business Directories

WhatsApp has rolled out a new feature that lets you look up and contact local businesses, like the thick Yellow Pages’ directory from the days of yore. The feature is a directory that lists down all the shops and services available within your vicinity — as long as they’re on WhatsApp.

The Head of WhatsApp, Will Cathcart, tweeted some details about the directory, including the fact that they are currently just testing it in São Paulo, Brazil. He also revealed screenshots that show the feature appearing as a separate section in your WhatsApp contacts list, and that it breaks down the business listings into categories such as restaurants, apparel & clothing, and so on:

For those concerned about privacy, Cathcart stresses that the feature does not log users’ locations or searches in the directory. Matt Idema, Facebook’s Vice President of Business Messaging, said that the test would include thousands of local São Paulo businesses in categories including food, retail, and local services. Idema also hinted that the company could be looking at India and Indonesia as the next market to receive the feature.

WhatsApp started its push into business integration back in 2018 when it launched a standalone app for businesses. Just last year, the platform added a shopping button and Carts, features that allowed users to browse and purchase items from a shop directly on the messaging app. However, WhatsApp’s moves regarding how it courts businesses have been controversial as of late.

Earlier this year, the Facebook-owned company introduced a privacy policy change that would share user data with businesses. It even threatened to penalise those who didn’t accept the new policy although the company eventually decided not to proceed with the move and allows users to continue using WhatsApp even if they refused to agree to the policy.

Meanwhile, Idema has also told Reuters that there is a possibility that WhatsApp could introduce in-app ads in the future, as ads are Facebook’s core business model. That may not bode well for some users out there, so let’s see what will transpire once the time comes.

WhatsApp Beta Rolls Out Encryption For Cloud Backups

While WhatsApp already implements end-to-end encryption for chats since 2014, it appears that the privacy feature will soon be extended to cloud backups as well. WABetaInfo reports that the Facebook-owned private messaging platform is finally testing encrypted backups in the latest beta version on its app, months after it was first discovered in March this year.

Beta users who choose to opt-in will have all their chat backups encrypted, whether it’s to Google Drive or Apple iCloud. By doing so, its worth noting that WhatsApp will prompt you to create a separate password to restore the backups. Alternatively, you can also rely on a generated 64-digit encryption key, which you’ll have to safely keep somewhere. According to WABetaInfo, neither of these security measurements will be shared with WhatsApp, Facebook, Google or Apple.

Much like anything else that are password protected, losing your password or the aforementioned encryption key will result in the backups to be locked away permanently. Nevertheless, those willing to take the risk will be assured that their chat history will be safe from prying eyes, even if law enforcement compels cloud service providers to provide access to your cloud backups.

The introduction of encrypted chat backup arrives just in time with WhatsApp’s upcoming rollout for its multi-device support, which allows users to use the app independently from their main phone. So far, there’s been no news yet on when exactly either of these features will be released to the general public. But when they do, using the versatile platform will be easier and more secure than ever.

WhatsApp Expands Cross-Platform Chat Migration To More Samsung Phones

WhatsApp has officially rolled out its new chat history transfer feature to a longer list of Samsung phones. The feature allows users to transfer their account’s data from iOS to any Samsung smartphone running Android 10 or higher, but still not the other way around. The tool had previously been announced last month but the messaging app said that it would initially only be available for two phones, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 and the Z Flip3.

The migration feature allows you to transfer your account information, profile photo, individual chats, group chats, chat history, media and settings. However, the transfer does not include your call history, display name, or peer-to-peer payment messages. Instead of backing up and migrating to the cloud, migrating your WhatsApp data from an iPhone to an Android phone requires a physical connection using a Type-C to Lightning cable, and you’re allowed to use adaptors if you don’t have this.

To migrate from iOS, you first need to reset your Samsung phone to factory settings, especially if you’ve been using it for a while. Then, you need to connect the two phones using the aforementioned cable and open up Samsung’s SmartSwitch app. Scan the QR code using your iPhone and the general data migration should start. Make sure you log in WhatsApp on your Samsung using the same number as the one on your iPhone. Once you’re done, just confirm the import, then boom, you should see your chat history appearing on your new phone. Take note that your old device will still have your data unless you wipe it or delete WhatsApp.

This implementation has been in the works for a few months now, when WABetaInfo sighted a “Move chats to Android” tool in one of the betas. Before this, there has been no official way of migrating between the two operating systems. There are third-party apps that can do this but they can be very expensive and may not be worth it for one-time use. WhatsApp says that the feature will be made available to more Android phones soon, but still no word on whether Android to iPhone transfers will also be supported in the near future.

WhatsApp May Soon Allow Hiding Last Seen Status From Specific Individuals

While people are naturally more concerned about the double blue ticks, WhatsApp has another privacy feature in the form of the Last Seen status. Like the blue ticks, you can either let everyone see it, or no one at all. But the messaging app may be working to change that, allowing users to hide it from specific individuals.

WABetaInfo reports that the feature is currently in development. In an iOS screenshot, the privacy setting has a new option that reads “My Contacts Except…”. This is in addition to the existing three, which are Everyone, My Contacts, and Nobody.

By default, it would probably be rare that the basic My Contacts option sees any use. But with exceptions, you will at least have the option to, for example, hide your Last Seen status from professional contacts if you use the same number for work as you do your private life.

As is usually the case, there’s no indication as to when this new privacy option will go live. For what it’s worth, it will likely show up on both iOS and Android versions of WhatsApp. But again, it’s always possible that both platforms get the new option at different dates.

WhatsApp Officially Launches “View Once” Disappearing Feature

WhatsApp is finally rolling out its new “view once” feature to the general public in its latest update after being released a little over a month ago in the Android beta. The feature allows you to send photos and videos that can only be viewed once by the recipient, disappearing completely thereafter.

Similar to the disappearing messages in Snapchat and Instagram, it aims to give users more control over their privacy. Using it is simple: when sending pictures or videos to someone, click on the “1” button on the left of the send button. The recipient won’t see a preview of what you sent so they’ll have to click it to find out the content. Once they’re done viewing, you’ll see the message now says “opened” and they won’t be able to access it again. Of course, keep in mind that they can still take a screenshot and unlike Snapchat, you won’t be notified.

WhatsApp gave a use case example of sending somebody your WiFi password without having to worry about them sharing it with others, or maybe something like photos of new clothes you’re trying on at a store which you don’t need to take up your storage space. Seeing as how View Once messages are still end-to-end encrypted, maybe the feature would also be useful for espionage or just sending some “work-inappropriate” content.

The photos and videos sent through View Once can remain unopened for 14 days before they expire. Apparently, View Once messages can also be restored through backup if it was still unopened during backup. WhatsApp will also be able to see what you sent if the recipient reported your message for problematic content that breaks their terms of service. Obviously, you won’t be able to forward, save, star, or share View Once media.

WhatsApp Reportedly Working On Letting Users Send Uncompressed Photos

WABetainfo reports a very interesting new feature being developed by WhatsApp that could fix the annoying issue of low-res quality when sending images on the platform; a non-issue on other popular messaging apps such as Telegram and Apple’s Messages. The issue stems from WhatsApp’s heavy image compression that causes even sharp, high-quality photos to be converted to a blurry shadow of its former self.

Android users can now hold their breath in anticipation as the report hints that the latest WhatsApp beta update is developing a way for users to send images without being degraded by heavy compression. From the interface, we can see that there will be three options for photo quality:

• Auto (Recommended): WhatsApp will decide whether or not to compress your photo based on your internet connection.
• Best quality: This option will make WhatsApp send the image in the best quality possible. It’s still unclear whether the images will be fully uncompressed or the app will just apply less aggressive compression.
• Data Saver: Images will be compressed as usual to save data and storage space.

Just last week, a beta update revealed that similar options for video quality are in the works. Just like the video feature, these functions are not yet active. Rather, the interface is there as a placeholder until the fully-fledged feature is released to beta users. There’s no telling when these features will be added to the beta, let alone the public. You can join the beta programme here, but do note that slots are currently full so you might have to wait a while.

WhatsApp Rolls Out ‘View Once’ Feature To Beta Users on Android

WhatsApp has begun to roll out a new feature known as View Once to beta users on Android. This particular feature is one of three new functionalities for the messaging app that has been confirmed by its CEO, Will Cathcart as well as CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg to WABetaInfo earlier this month.

Meant to deliver more privacy to users, this feature allows them to send photos and videos that would disappear immediately after it is viewed and closed by the recipient. This is opposed to the existing Disappearing Messages feature, whereby users can set their messages to be automatically removed from WhatsApp after seven days.

At the same time, users would also be notified once the media file has been viewed by the recipient. This option can also be enabled for groups and even recipients that have not activated or yet to receive the feature on their device.

However, do note that recipients can still screenshot View Once’s photos or videos before they are deleted which is something you have to be mindful about, since WhatsApp does not have a built-in screenshot detector. WABetaInfo has also said that iOS beta testers will have access to View Once soon, but didn’t mention any exact rollout date for them.

WhatsApp To Allow Chats Transfers To Different Phone Numbers

One of the defining traits of WhatsApp among messenger apps is that your chat is locked to your phone number. It looks like the Facebook subsidiary is looking to change that. This will be part of the larger overall chat history migration feature that includes the ability to transfer it between Android and iOS.

WABetaInfo has obtained a screenshot which shows this feature. The phone number transfer option shows up at the very bottom. But it doesn’t really explain the process of moving your WhatsApp chat history from one phone number to another.

The rest of the screenshot looks to be an expansion to the feature that allows for the migration between Android and iOS. From the screenshot, it looks like you will not be able to perform the chat transfer at any time. Instead, the process is limited to during the initial setup of WhatsApp. While the screenshot is showing the process of moving from iOS to Android, it’s probably safe to say that going the other way around is no different.

As with many WhatsApp features in development, there’s no word on when this feature will actually be available. No doubt that there are scenarios where this feature will be usefull. But we’re pretty sure the general user will find the chat history transfer between Android and iOS to be the more useful one.

India Pushes WhatsApp To Drop Its New Privacy Policy With Legal Threat

The Indian government has told WhatsApp in a letter to drop its updated privacy policy, threatening legal action if it doesn’t receive a satisfactory response soon from the messaging platform.

Over the last few months, WhatsApp has been embroiled in worldwide privacy controversy after announcing it would require users to give it permission to share their data with parent company Facebook. The company insists that the policy change would only affect users who message businesses on its platform.

India, however, is having none of that. According to Reuters, the country’s technology ministry (which sent the letter) wants a response from the company by 25 May, threatening legal action if the latter doesn’t comply with India’s Information Technology Act.

“In fulfilment of its sovereign responsibility to protect the rights and interests of Indian citizens, the government of India will consider various options available to it under laws in India,” the ministry said in its letter to WhatsApp, according to TechCrunch.

WhatsApp said in a statement that it was continuing to engage with the Indian government, and reiterated that its updated privacy policy would not affect the secrecy of personal messages.

Delhi’s strong opposition to the policy update puts WhatsApp in quite the pickle: India is the platform’s largest market by far, home to over 500 million of its users. As anger broke out across the country over its new policy, WhatsApp hastily blanketed Indian newspapers with ads claiming that “WhatsApp respects and protects your privacy”.

WhatsApp has already been prodding users to accept the policy change, stating that they otherwise would face greatly reduced functionality on the app.

WhatsApp Walks Back On Use Restrictions For Those Who Refuse New Privacy Policy

Earlier in the month, WhatsApp detailed its plans on pestering users to accept its new privacy policy. The plan included blocking of functionality should the pestering fail to convince users to do so. Though it looks like the Facebook subsidiary is walking back on its arm twisting methods.

Said plans were previously laid out on a WhatsApp support page. The very same page now says that none of that will be happening. The company will still occasionally remind users that the new privacy policy exists, but they won’t be persistent.

In a statement to TNW, WhatsApp says that it has been discussing with “various authorities and privacy experts” regarding its strongarm tactics. No doubt India’s legal threat against the messaging platform may have something to do with this U-turn. After all, we’re talking about the platform’s largest market. Though only the company and its owner Facebook will know if this is something that will stick, or only a temporary measure to take some heat off of itself.

This ultimately may be a desperate move to retain users. But all that being said, it may be a case of too little, too late. Shortly after the company made the initial privacy policy announcement, a lot of its users began migrating to alternatives like Telegram and Signal.

WhatsApp Details Restrictions For Not Accepting Privacy Policy

Following backlash to the initial privacy policy change, WhatsApp said in February that users can voluntarily accept it before 15 May. Though if you don’t, you’ll slowly get its usability limited. It looks like the company has detailed what will happen if you don’t agree to it sharing data with Facebook.

BleepingComputer found a new WhatsApp FAQ page that details exactly what sort of functionality you will lose. Though not all of it is new. To start, post 15 May, those who have not accepted the new terms will start getting persistent reminders to do so.

Following that, continued refusal will see you losing access to your WhatsApp chat. You can still accept calls but calling back missed calls can only be done via notifications. The same goes for replying to texts; you can get them, but replying is only possible via notifications. A version of this was detailed back in February, with some variations.

But what happens after that? The new FAQ page says after a few weeks of this limited functionality, WhatsApp will stop sending you anything altogether. No calls, texts, or even notifications.

Your account will, in effect, become practically deactivated. That being said, the page was not clear if this constitutes as actually being inactive, and thus being subject to the 120-day deletion rule, since your device can still connect to the internet with WhatsApp running.

It’s probably worth reminding that, following the initial uproar, the company did remind users that the data sharing with Facebook only applies when messaging applicable businesses. But whether or not this changes anything, it’s still up to each individual user to decide.

WhatsApp To Add Android And iOS Chat History Migration

One of the main reasons that Android or iOS users are locked into their platform is WhatsApp. More specifically, the inability to migrate their chat history from one platform to the other. At least, not without risks or violating the app’s Terms of Service. Though now, the company may be working on just that.

WABetaInfo reports that the possibility to migrate your WhatsApp chat history from one platform to another may indeed be coming. The outlet also provided a screenshot of the process, at least from iOS to Android. It’s unlikely that this is an exclusively one-way process, though there’s no discounting the possibility.

Naturally, for this to happen, the WhatsApp version on both platforms will have to be up-to-date enough to run the feature. That being said, there is unfortunately still no word on when the feature will actually go live.

But when it does, it will undoubtedly be one of the best features to grace the messaging app. Of course, it won’t completely solve all the migration issues that users may experience moving from one platform to another. But it will be one major hurdle torn down. It may also help some people get back to the app after the exodus following its privacy update.

WhatsApp Is Testing Voice Message Playback Speeds

Voice messages aren’t usually something that you’d think would need playback speed adjustments. But that’s exactly what WhatsApp is currently working on. Currently under development, it’s a feature that will be making its way into the app sometime in the future.

WABetaInfo reports that WhatsApp is working on giving voice messages three different playback speeds. The speeds will be indicated just below the sender’s profile picture accompanying the voice message. You have the default 1.0x speed, and you can speed things up to 1.5x or 2.0x. Oddly enough, WABetaInfo also mentions that WhatsApp “would also support lower playback speeds, but they won’t be released for the public because they make less sense”.

But to begin with, speeding up voice message speeds doesn’t make any more or less sense than slowing them down. Unless of course you have people in your WhatsApp contact list who love hitting the record button before actually figuring out what they want to say. Then the feature will be helpful in speeding up the filler words like “uh”, “um” and the sort. That, or if they just have a chronically slow taking speed.

At any rate, there’s no indication as to when WhatsApp plans to add the feature just yet. All we have is that they will be released in a future update, which WABetaInfo says will be in the coming weeks.

WhatsApp Desktop App Now Includes Video And Voice Call Support

WhatsApp, through its official blog, revealed that video and voice call support has been added to its desktop app on Windows and Mac platforms. As you may recall from our previous report, the new features first entered beta testing in December 2020, but were only made available for a small number of users.

Unfortunately, users of the web version of WhatsApp will be disappointed to know that the new video and voice call features have not been implemented just yet. It is not known when the company is planning to roll out the update for that particular platform.

Launching the new functions on desktop is similar to how it is done via the mobile version of WhatsApp. Simply open up a chat window and then click on either the video camera or phone icon on top to start the respective type of call. Video calls will pop out in a resizable window, and will always appear on top of any opened applications on screen. Of course, a webcam and/or microphone are required in order to initiate these calls.

However, the Facebook-owned messaging service noted that the new features are only available for individual chats, and would eventually be expanded to groups at a later time. A blunder on WhatsApp’s end, as this delay will definitely give rival platforms such as Zoom and Skype an advantage in terms of multi-user video conferencing.

Surprisingly, WhatsApp is still offering new quality-of-life features to its users, despite receiving a tremendous amount of backlash for its upcoming policy change. However, these new additions and a majority of the platform’s functionality will eventually be stripped off from those who insist on refusing to accept its new privacy changes by 15 May 2021.