WABetaInfo colleagues have discovered two new features that WhatsApp developers are working on, both related to Status updates (the equivalent of Stories, to understand): the ability to view them directly in the chat list and the ability to add reactions quick. For the moment they are in development and are not formally available even in the Beta currently in circulation: the source has managed to find them by rummaging in the maze of the code – in this specific case of the desktop client.
QUICK REACTIONS
As the image above shows, while viewing a Story (or status update if you prefer) a list of eight Emoji/reactions will appear at the bottom that can be applied very quickly, simply by touching or clicking on them:
- Emoticon with Heart Eyes
- Smiley Face with Laughing Tears
- Amazed face
- Sad face
- Hands giving thanks
- Applause
- Party
- 100 rating
The source says that for those who have published the story the reaction will take the form of a simple text message containing the emoji, although it is not certain that in the future a more specific and specially designed interface will arrive.
UPDATE STATUS IN THE CHAT LIST
If you look closely, the profile picture of the first account in the chat list above is highlighted by a very thin and almost complete green circle: this is to indicate that the user has posted a new update of their status. By clicking/tapping the profile picture you can directly watch the update, while clicking on the rest of the row you can access the chat as usual. It seems a rather ingenious way to promote the diffusion of functionality; at this point, one wonders if it will still be useful to keep two separate tabs for chat and status. We will have to wait for developments in this regard.
INSPIRED BY INSTAGRAM
Those who use/watch the Stories on Instagram will have noticed that the functions described in this article have already been available for some time: this is not too surprising given that both platforms are owned by Meta, the company is previously known as Facebook, but it’s still interesting to see how the two development teams are moving in the same direction. As usual, it is impossible to say when, if and how these changes will officially arrive on the stable channel.