WhatsApp will soon let you speak your status.
The new status update feature is nested within a series of upcoming ones Whatsapp Features. After WABetaInfo (opens in new tab)the company is working on 10 new tools. Most are currently available through the beta version of the Android app, an exclusive for iOS devices.
WhatsApp is currently testing on Android Language Status Updates (opens in new tab) Users can record and share voice memos as status instead of plain text. You have a maximum recording time of 30 seconds and if you don’t like what you hear you can discard the status before recording another update. Notes are confirmed to be end-to-end encrypted “to ensure only the people you choose with your privacy settings can listen to them”. They also disappear automatically after 24 hours or you can delete them yourself at any time.
However, there are limitations for the current version of language status updates. Not everyone who downloads the beta app has the opportunity to record updates as it only goes to a select few. Also, other users must have the beta installed on their phones to listen.
Improvement of the chat transmission
Next, the development team works on a revised chat transmission (opens in new tab) Ability to safely transfer your chat history to a new Android device without having to use Google Drive; effectively removing the middle man. The migration works in such a way that you first need to open the chat transfer tool on your old phone Scan a QR code (opens in new tab) on the WhatsApp copy of the new device. It appears that this is exclusive to Android phones, as according to WABetaInfo an iOS version is “not currently planned”.
And the last notable Android changes are the new shortcut blocking features. With one you can block a person within the chat list (opens in new tab) without having to open the entire conversation, while the other allows users to block contacts within a notification (opens in new tab). Note that the latter feature only appears when you receive a message from an unknown source. That way you don’t accidentally block someone you know.
Exclusively for iPhone
For iOS, WhatsApp adds In-app camera tabs (opens in new tab) This allows you to switch between taking photos or videos on the fly instead of pressing and holding the on-screen button. It is not known whether the video mode will continue recording or whether it will stop after switching to photo mode. Hopefully it’s the former, as it would be disappointing if recording stopped after switching.
Unfortunately the iOS Beta Program (opens in new tab) for WhatsApp is full, so new interested iPhone owners can’t try the upcoming camera mode. However, the latest Android beta still has room for testers via the Google play store (opens in new tab). Official launch dates remain unknown for everything.
While we have you, be sure to check out TechRadar’s current list The best free Android apps available through the Google Play Store. It’s a huge list, spanning 11 pages, covering education, travel, and camera apps.
