WhatsApp is a highly versatile messaging app that can keep you in touch in a number of different ways with friends, family, and coworkers. With its success with people worldwide, the platform has constantly added new features to improve the experience. WhatsApp Status was introduced nearly six years ago in an effort to introduce Snapchat's most popular feature to the platform. Now, WhatsApp is making improvements to Status, introducing features that give users new ways to communicate while safe guarding privacy.

Status gives you access to ephemeral updates, giving people a brief look at what you're up to for a short 24-hour period. You can share pictures, videos, text, and more. Despite this, sometimes you don't want to share all your Status updates with everyone that you know and that's where the new Private Audience Selector comes in. The new feature gives users the ability to choose who gets to see a Status update. To keep things convenient, WhatsApp will remember your recently selected audience and will retain that group for your next update.

In addition, Status will now support voice messages, allowing up to 30 seconds of recorded audio to be posted, giving users a new way to express themselves. Furthermore, users will now be able to react to a Status using emoji. This gives users a quick and easy way to react without having to message or create an original reaction. In order send an emoji reaction, users will need to swipe up on a Status and just select from one of the eight emoji provided.

Status updates will now be more noticeable thanks to a new ring that will encompass the Status profile, making it easier for users to identify when new updates are available. Furthermore, link previews will now be available with URLs that are posted in Status. This will give users a small preview of what to expect before clicking on the link. The update is now rolling worldwide and a full roll-out is expected in the next few weeks. You can try WhatsApp by downloaded the app for iOS and Android.


Source: WhatsApp Blog