WhatsApp users will be able to access their accounts from up to four linked devices in the coming months, the company's head Will Cathcart has announced. According to an interview with WABetaInfo, in the coming months, WhatsApp on iPad might be supported because of the multi device feature.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also confirmed to the website that a disappearing mode is coming to WhatsApp that automatically enables ephemeral messages in new chat threads. The CEO also mentioned that another feature ‘View Once' will be rolled out soon, so the recipient can only open your photos and videos once before they disappear from the chat. These features are coming for WhatsApp beta users soon, as per the report.
Cathcart just stopped short of confirming reports that WhatsApp has an iPad app in development, saying that multi-device support will make the app on iPad a possibility. Zuckerberg said the multi-device feature will not compromise the end-to-end encryption. Currently, WhatsApp requires internet connectivity on the main device to work on other devices. In the interview, Zuckerberg said, “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,” he said.
Apart from multi-device support, WABetaInfo reported that WhatsApp is working on a new password-protected encrypted chat backups feature, that may allow users to transfer their chat histories between iOS and Android devices.
WhatsApp on Wednesday announced new features to help businesses chat with people. The company said that it has cut down the time it takes for businesses to get up and running from weeks to just five minutes.
The Facebook-owned company said that it is also rolling out new messaging features that can help people get business done faster. New list messages present a menu of up to 10 options so people no longer need to type out a response. "Reply buttons will allow people to quickly make a selection from up to three options with just a quick tap that a business can set ahead of time through their WhatsApp Business API account," the company informed during the annual F8 conference in virtual avatar. The company said that as always, people will remain in control of their chats.
"People still need to reach out to start a conversation or request a business contact them via WhatsApp. With these updates, we're also providing new ways for people to give greater feedback about the experience they are having if they have a reason to block a business,' WhatsApp said.