WhatsApp has been adding new features and improving existing features regularly this year and these are four of the best.
Edit photos on your computer
If you work at a computer a lot, you probably already use WhatsApp’s desktop app. But until this update, you couldn’t edit photos in it: you had to use the media editor in the phone version of the app.
But now, the same editor is available in the web / desktop version so you can make all the usual adjustments such as rotating, cropping and adding text and stickers.
Simply click the paperclip icon, then choose Photos & Videos (the purple icon) and choose the images and videos you want to share. As with the phone app, you can send multiple images and videos at the same time.
Faster voice message playback
If you have a friend who regularly sends you long voice messages, it’s useful to be able to play them back faster so you get the information quicker. You can do this in the mobile and desktop apps, choosing 1.5x or 2x speed. Start playing a message, and the person’s icon will change to 1x. Tap it to toggle between the different speeds.
Sticker suggestions
Another quality-of-life update to follow other recent ones such as making the voice message player global, rather than in a conversation. Now, you don’t have to navigate through various tabs to find an appropriate sticker for a chat: suggestions will pop up as you type (much like emoji suggestions do already).
WhatsApp says the feature was designed with privacy in mind, meaning WhatsApp still doesn’t know what you’re typing or searching for.
Link previews
Sending links is common in WhatsApp chats, and this update means you get to see a preview of what the link contains: a title and image give context and help you know before you tap on it what you’ll be taken to.
Similarly, if you’re sending a link, you can see what the recipient(s) will see and read before you hit the send button.
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