WhatsApp is on almost every Android, Windows and iOS user’s smartphone, boasting as the most used chat app on the planet.
The chat app connects close to one billion people on a monthly basis and the usage of the app keeps growing, especially in developing markets. The problem is that the application is not the only one offering users with free messaging and calling services over the internet. There are quite a number of other players in the industry who are offering even much better services than what WhatsApp has to offer.
The company behind the app – Facebook – is not new to competition. It has managed to brush aside the likes of Twitter and Google+ while along the way acquiring the likes of Instagram and WhatsApp in a bid to become the most used platform on the planet. As a result, the company has been doing all it can to ensure that WhatsApp remains competitive and relevant in the market, including regular addition of new features and functionality.
Changes in security and functionality of WhatsApp groups
Leaks coming WhatsApp Translation Center reveal that the app is working on two major changes for its millions of followers. These will essentially affect the security as well as the functionality of the app’s group chats.
WhatsApp announced that it has added end-to-end encryption to its messaging services. However, this is just by word of mouth and there is surely no way users of the app can tell whether the chat is safe or not. This is what the company is now working on, but it will currently roll out to group chats first.
Users will be alerted whether or not they are dealing with an encrypted channel. This means that users will be able to quit any communication upon being alerted that the group is not safe. In addition, the security update means that no stranger from outside the group can come in and check your conversations.
Another major change coming involves a new button that appears just below the conversation on the screen. Using this button, you will now be able to jump to the most recent messages in the group chat so as you can read them. This is a cool addition, especially for those who are less active in groups that are very active yet they only want to know the latest message (s). The button will be handy when messages start to flow when not present in the group chat.
As of now, there is no official word on when this update will start showing up, but it’s expected to be soon.
WhatsApp beta for Windows gets a video trimming feature
While this is happening, WhatsApp Beta for Windows is getting new features and improvements. Version 2.12.338 for Windows devices adds the ability to trim videos before sending them. This feature is new to users of this Microsoft-owned platform, but others have been using it for quite some time now. What this update means for Windows users of WhatsApp is that they will now be able to send longer videos.