All features added to the messaging app this year

WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps with over 1.5 billion monthly active users. It is also a feature-rich apps and new ones are regularly added.

In 2019, several features were added to WhatsApp, including the recently added fingerprint lock and group privacy features. WhatsApp is currently working on features like dark mode, multi-device support, delete messages and more.

Let’s take a look at some of the features that were introduced in the stable version of WhatsApp in the year 2019.

New features in WhatsApp in 2019

Biometric authentication

WhatsApp first added biometric authentication for iOS users in February this year. It means users have the option to use Touch ID or Face ID to unlock the app. In October, the much-awaited feature was introduced for Android users in the form of a fingerprint lock.

Some smartphone makers such as OnePlus and Xiaomi provide an app locker as a built-in feature. However, not all smartphone makers provide this feature and WA’s fingerprint lock can come in handy.

Improved group privacy settings

The group privacy settings were spotted in the beta version of WhatsApp early in the year. Recently, the app started rolling out this feature. The new group privacy setting allows users to select who can add them to groups. Users have the option to select between ‘Everyone’, ‘My Contacts’ and ‘My Contacts Except’.

To learn how to enable this feature, you can refer to our story on group privacy settings.

Audio picker

WhatsApp rolled out the audio picker feature earlier this year that makes it easier to share multiple audio files at once. Users can also play the audio file before sending it to others. The update also introduced audio preview and image preview, allowing users to listen to the audio and view the album art of the file while selecting them.

Group call button

After introducing group calls earlier, WhatsApp this year added a dedicated group call button to group chats. This button allows users to pick up to four participants and directly place a group call from a group chat.

Forwarded and Frequently Forwarded labels

WhatsApp initially introduced a ‘Forwarded’ label to messages that were forwarded from one chat to another. Later, the company introduced the ‘Frequently Forwarded’ label that is added to a message that has been forwarded more than four times.

The introduction of these labels from WhatsApp aims to fight fake news. There have been several cases where false information was shared on WhatsApp.

Consecutive voice messages

WhatsApp added consecutive voice message feature to both, Android and iOS versions of the app. This allows users to play consecutive voice messages automatically, instead of having to play each voice message manually.

Private reply

WhatsApp introduced the reply privately feature for groups. This allows users in groups to highlight a particular message in the group chat and reply privately to the sender of the message.

Share WhatsApp status to Facebook

As you may already know, WhatsApp is owned by Facebook. The app recently introduced a new feature that allows users to share their WhatsApp stories to Facebook Stories. When you post a status on WhatsApp, a share to Facebook button now appears in the status tab.

Opi stickers

Earlier this year, WhatsApp introduced a new Opi sticker pack designed by Colombian illustrator Oscar Ospina. The pack features a white colored bear expressing different emotions and includes as many as 30 stickers.

Improved PiP mode

WhatsApp also introduced an improved picture-in-picture mode for its app on Android and iOS. This allows users to play videos from YouTube, Facebook and Instagram even after switching chats. After a recent update, users can now also play Netflix trailers using the picture-in-picture mode.

WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp for Business was launched as a dedicated app to allow businesses to connect to their customers. It is available in India, Brazil, Germany, Mexico, the UK, and the US and is expected to rollout to other countries soon.

The app offers several features such as catalog, quick replies, labels and chat list filtering. In addition to helping businesses, this has also helped customers to easily communicate with businesses, without having to worry about visiting a website or email.

See also:

Scammers are now using WhatsApp to steal money - here’s how you can protect yourself

How to know if someone has blocked you on WhatsApp

How to stop others from adding you in a WhatsApp group

How to open whatsapp