WhatsApp Revamps Groups With New Features Like Emoji Reactions, Adds Communities Option
Popular Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp today announced the launch of a new "Communities" feature, which is designed to allow people to bring together separate groups under a single umbrella. WhatsApp says that this will give people a way to receive updates that are sent to an entire community, and then organize smaller discussion groups on important topics.
So, for example, school parents could create an overarching "School" community, which breaks out into smaller groups based on grade and other factors. Community admins will have access to "powerful new tools" like announcement messages and control over the groups that can be created within a community.
We think Communities will make it easier for a school principal to bring all the parents of the school together to share must-read updates and set up groups about specific classes, extracurricular activities, or volunteer needs.
WhatsApp is also adding a number of improvements for groups, including emoji reactions for reacting to messages, an admin delete feature that will allow problematic messages to be removed from everyone's chats, file sharing with support for files up to 2GB, and one-tap voice calling for up to 32 people.
Popular Stories
WhatsApp appears to be introducing a new visual indicator that shows when a contact is online, according to WaBetaInfo.
The feature adds a small green circle to a contact's profile photo when they're active in the app, and which disappears the moment they leave, all updated in real time. The indicator is now being tested for the WhatsApp iPhone app in TestFlight after it debuted on Android...
WhatsApp is developing a first-party cloud storage option for chat backups on iPhone, providing users with an alternative to iCloud for the first time, according to app tinkerer WABetaInfo.
Code found in the WhatsApp beta for iOS (version 26.28.10.16), available through TestFlight, suggests that users will eventually be able to pick their preferred backup destination directly from the app's...
WhatsApp has started rolling out its new username feature, reports WABetaInfo. Some users who reserved their username have started receiving a notification that their username is active, and that they can now use it to send and receive messages to other users without revealing their phone number.
When someone creates a username, WhatsApp will notify people who already have an active chat with...
