WhatsApp has come up with a new updated version 2.16.71 that is ready for a Beta release for iOS users.
The latest version is doing the rounds to fix many bugs and make minor improvements, along with supporting the autoplay feature for GIF images. When the app is updated with this feature after its official release, it will allow the GIF images to be automatically displayed. This popular instant messaging app has strictly restricted the intrusion of GIF images till date. But now offering support to share these animated images will definitely be a much welcomed element to make instant messaging even more interesting to the users.
As of now it is still not clear if the GIF image support will be carried out to users for a general release or when will it be released to the Android platform. The Twitter account, @WABetaInfo that tracks the Beta releases of the WhatsApp official app first reported about this latest Beta release of WhatsApp for the iOS platform and also declared that the changelog for WhatsApp’s new version 2.16.71 for iOS Beta service is now available.
What the new updated version offers
The new update comes with many new changes that include backing auto play for GIF images when it is shared as a link. So WhatsApp will now insert the GIF images from the links and will autoplay them in the conversations. GIF images can now be saved to the camera roll, with an option which allows saving it in a simple image format. GIF image messages can now be replied directly too. The new update even supports encryption for sharing GIF images. It also offers support for 3D Touch actions on the GIF images like Peek and Pop.
WhatsApp’s business rival in the instant messaging service market, Viber had also recently introduced the GIF image supporting feature to its app. So obviously WhatsApp seems to have followed Viber’s footsteps and has introduced the GIF image support to its platform too. Most of the other rival companies like Facebook Messenger etc. are already supporting this GIF image sharing feature.
Another big addition to the new features that is expected to be introduced soon to WhatsApp is its video calling feature. There is already a lot of evidence in the Beta release that points towards the company’s plan of adding this video calling feature. AndroidPit, a well-known gadgets news site, had reported that it had received screenshots from the users who have been running the Beta Version of the latest updated WhatsApp 2.16.71 on the iOS platform. These screenshots showed a button for making video calls next to the normal call button which is located at the top of the chat screen. This feature is not yet functional since it has not been activated yet and also because both the sender and recipient of the messages should have the Beta app version. In addition to all these new updated features, other users who had volunteered to help in translating WhatsApp to other various languages have now received requests which resort to translating even the audio and video call options.
WhatsApp had its last major update in the last month, which had the addition of the document sharing feature to the WhatsApp Web. And not long before that, the company introduced its first app for the desktop that runs on both the OS X and Windows platforms. The other few recent updated features include the ZIP file sharing, a call back option right beside the WhatsApp missed call notifications.