The world’s most popular messaging app WhatsApp is set to introduce several new features in 2020. Here’s everything we know is coming down the pipeline.
Used by 1.5 billion users on a monthly basis, WhatsApp has introduced a number of new features over the last twelve months, including the ability to choose who can add you to a group chat, respond privately to a message sent inside a group chat, and protect your chats with a fingerprint on Android smartphones.
We always receive very software update of this app to include a slew of new features to provide smooth messaging and call experience to its users, here’s a breakdown of the new features that look set to arrive over the next 12 months.
Dark Mode
We are tired of hearing that the Dark Mode feature is coming to WhatsApp users as it has been teased through 2019 and we expect it to see the day of light in 2020.
WABetaInfo – a popular Twitter account that deep-dives through the latest beta releases of the app to uncover clues about forthcoming features – discovered the first hints at the gloomier appearance in summer 2018.
Since then, we’ve seen an increasing amount of evidence about the feature, including the fact that WhatsApp is purportedly looking to create two new potential looks – one in greyscale, and another in pitch-blacks. Twitter uses a similar approach. While the pitch-black tones will be the only ones that act as a battery-saver for those with smartphones touting OLED touchscreens, the greyscale should still help people who are only looking to ease their eyes when using their smartphones late at night.
Although WhatsApp’s Dark Mode is still in the works (with no confirmed release date as yet) WABetaInfo has reported that the dark theme update is ready for the android version of WhatsApp.
Self-Destructing Messages
As usual this feature has been discovered by @WABetaInfo once again, WhatsApp appears to be working on a SnapChat-inspired new feature that will let you set a timer on your texts. The new feature means users can send messages that will self-destruct after a certain time has passed.
The Facebook-owned team looked set to brand the feature “Disappearing Messages,” which wasn’t the most thrilling name. Something that WhatsApp appeared to think too because it changed the name to “Delete Messages” as of the 2.19.348 update.
Group chats will be able to set a blanket rule about Deleting Messages – so that every text message, photo, video vanishes after either one hour, one day, one week, one month or one year. It’s a fun way to make sure that you’re not constantly haunted by the texts, videos or photos that you’re sending to an individual or group.
Get ready for Ads
Facebook has always been looking for ways to monitize WhatsApp and this year we expect full blown ads in the app. The company last year attempted to ban all modded WhatsApp version like GBWhatsApp in order to introduce advertisements on this platform just like it has on its Instagram stories.
Rumblings about advertisements coming to WhatsApp have been around for some time (and are believed to be one of the reasons that WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum left the company after its acquisition by Facebook).
