These are WhatsApp's most anticipated features in 2019

One of the most popular messaging apps in the world, WhatsApp has over a billion users worldwide. This year, the Facebook-owned app has come with a slew of updates to improve its efficiency.

Here are some of the most anticipated features of WhatsApp in 2019.

1. Touch ID and Face ID

This security feature will prevent any third-party from reading your messages. It can be enabled in your privacy settings to use Touch ID or Face ID to unlock the app.

2. Limiting frequent forwards

Forwarded messages, often containing unverified information, plagues a lot of users on WhatsApp. In fact, fake news is one of the biggest issues faced by WhatsApp users in India. According to LiveMint, users will now be able to see how many times a message has been forwarded.

WhatsApp has actually introduced a limit of 'five' when it comes to forwarding a message. Messages forwarded up to four times are considered ‘frequently forwarded’.

3. Ranking of contacts

Users will be able to keep their favourite contacts at the top of the list with the help of this feature. Based on the level of interaction, WhatsApp will organise your contacts for easier access.

4. Dark Mode

A much-awaited update, the dark mode is a battery saving feature. It has been under development for a few months now, and users have been waiting for WhatsApp to introduce it.

5. Hide Status

Users can now customise viewership of their status by choosing who can see their status by tapping the ‘hide’ button above the Muted Update Section, reports LiveMint.

ALSO READ

[YS Exclusive] The rise and rise of TikTok: how a Chinese video creation app democratised conte...

6. Share WhatsApp status on other platforms

Now you can share your WhatsApp status on Facebook, Instagram, Gmail, and Google Photos

without linking the accounts.

However, this feature is not automatic and you will have to actively share the post on each platform to avoid security breaches.

7. Privacy Settings for Groups

Another much-awaited feature - this new privacy setting and invite system will help users have more control. Users will be invited to the groups and they can choose to approve or decline within three days. This way, they will have more control over the group messages they receive.

To enable it, go to Settings in your app, then tap Account > Privacy > Groups and select one of three options: "Nobody", "My Contacts", or "Everyone".

"Nobody" means you'll have to approve joining every group to which you're invited, and "My Contacts" means only users you have in your address book can add you to groups.

8. New Web and Desktop Features

To celebrate the success of WhatsApp Business app, certain features from the Business app have been added to desktop and web version. These features are Quick Replies, which are frequent messages to answer common questions, labels to organise contacts and chats and chat list filtering which enables the user to manage chats under various filters like unread messages, broadcast lists and groups.

(Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta)

ALSO READ

[Funding alert] EdTech startup Board Infinity raises Rs 2.2 Cr from multiple angel investors

ALSO READ

Oyo's Ritesh follows Ola's Bhavish's footsteps, likely to increase ownership in the firm