WhatsApp beta for iOS and Android has received a brand new feature, something that will be extremely handy to use to let your friends and family know where you are.
The feature has been rumored for a long time and finally here are some screenshots that should help you get an idea of how live location sharing would work.People are increasingly using WhatsApp to find others in a public spot or to let them know where they are. The beta version for both iOS and Android works very similar. You can click on the clipper icon on the right hand side to share your location. It is now available on Android version 2.17.151 and if we are to go by the screenshot, there is a feature called set duration.
As the title suggests, it should be a feature that allows you to let everyone know how long you will be in that particular location. If they are supposed to contact you or meet you in person, they should do so within the specified time period. The default message when you share your live location is ‘This is my live location’ but there is a cursor after the text ends which indicates that you can edit the text to add your own comment. A lot of features found on WhatsApp looks similar to Facebook but given the usefulness of this particular addition, it may not backfire as the new status messages did.
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After all, being able to edit your comments before sharing a location would help post updates or let other people know what you are up to rather than simply providing geographic points like an explorer. The live location sharing is also available on WhatsApp iOS beta version 2.17.11. Once you click to share it, a set your duration window will appear and you can choose it as well. Once the duration ends and you move out of the it will also send a message that live location has ended.
Just like any other unique addition, it so happens that privacy and security issues are rife over location sharing. When using WhatsApp live location sharing, you should also specify when and how or with whom it is being shared. Some specific privacy settings may be rolled out later but for the convenience of users, the basic settings should be available as soon as the location sharing is made available. It will be eventually rolled out to users in different regions.