WhatsApp could soon add multi-device support, disappearing mode and ‘view once’

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KEY STORY

  • WhatsApp will soon allow support on multiple devices at the same time. This was confirmed by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and WhatsApp chief Will Cathcart to WABetainfo, a website which is known for revealing information about upcoming features on the messaging app. Zuckerberg also confirmed plans to add a new ‘disappearing mode’ across all chat threads along with a ‘view once’ option as well. Zuckerberg also shared screenshots showing how the features will look once they are rolled out.

    Multi-device support for up to 4 devices

  • Zuckerberg confirmed to WABetaInfo that the multi-device support will be arriving on the platform soon. Although an exact release date was not disclosed, multi-device support elements have been spotted in WhatsApp’s private Beta versions for quite a while now.
  • “It’s been a big technical challenge to get all your messages and content to sync properly across devices even when your phone battery dies, but we’ve solved this and we’re looking forward to getting it out soon!” Zuckerberg said.
  • WhatsApp head Will Cathcart had earlier said that users will be able to connect to up to four devices simultaneously using WhatsApp’s multi-device feature. Further, Cathcart also suggested that a dedicated WhatsApp app for the iPad is also in the works.

    Disappearing mode, view once for some messages 

     

  • WhatsApp introduced a seven-day timer on sent messages last year also known as the disappearing messages features. Now it wants to expand this ability and will add a disappearing mode, which will let users enforce disappearing messages across all of their WhatsApp chat threads.
  • So once a user turns on disappearing mode, all WhatsApp threads will become disappearing threads and their chats will be gone after a fixed time period.
  • It is not clear if WhatsApp plans to give more flexibility with regard to timer options as to when messages should disappear. Currently WhatsApp messages disappear after seven days. Other apps such as Signal and Telegram offer more flexibility on when a message gets automatically deleted ranging from a few seconds to hours to a fixed number of days.

CONCLUSION

  • The platform also plans to add a ‘view once’ feature to let users share media such as photos and videos that can be seen just once, similar to sending photos on Instagram, also owned by parent company Facebook. Basically after the recipient has seen the photo or video, it will disappear from chat.
  • The ‘view once’ feature will start rolling out soon as well. The new features will be available to users in a public beta “in the next month or two,” said Zuckerberg and Cathcart, according to the report.

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