INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
It's been a busy year for WhatsApp; the long awaited call waiting function finally arrived, letting you see if someone is trying to reach
you while you're speaking to someone else, fingerprint unlock gave us a more secure alternative to passwords, and There were a few hiccups
along the way, including a bug that let one malicious message delete entire group chats, and a vulnerability that meant it was possible to
take control of a user's phone using a specially made MP4.Despite rumours earlier in the year, Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram weren't
merged into one colossal social app
However, Facebook did court controversy by adding its (somewhat tainted) name to WhatsApp's splash screen, and more significant changes are
afoot behind the scenes as the three apps are tied more closely together.We're expecting some big updates for WhatsApp throughout 2020, so
here's our guide to everything we expect to see in the coming year.(Image credit: WhatsApp Inc)Dark modeIn 2020, we should finally see the
official launch of WhatsApp dark mode
It’s surprising it’s taken so long for the messaging app to receive a darker design, but assets tucked away in the install files for the
beta release suggest that it’s very nearly ready for public testing.In fact, we may be gifted not one dark mode, but two, with a special
option designed specifically for power-saving on devices with AMOLED screens..It also seems that it’ll be possible to either activate dark
mode manually, or have the app switch to it automatically when your phone’s power saving settings are enabled.Self-destructing
messagesAnother feature we’ve been expecting some time is the ability to create messages that will be deleted automatically after a short
period of time, for improved privacy
Many rival messaging apps already offer this, and we know that WhatsApp has been working on it for some time.The feature was initially known
as ‘Disappearing messages’, but is now being referred to as ‘Delete messages’
Based on evidence from WhatsApp beta install files, it looks like messages can be deleted automatically after an hour, a day, a week, a
month or a year.(Image credit: Shutterstock)Another feature we’ve been expecting some time is the ability to create messages that will be
deleted automatically after a short period of time, for improved privacy
Many rival messaging apps already offer this, and we know that WhatsApp has been working on it for some time.The feature was initially known
as ‘Disappearing messages’, but is now being referred to as ‘Delete messages’
Based on evidence from WhatsApp beta install files, it looks like messages can be deleted automatically after an hour, a day, a week, a
month or a year.AdsYes, they're finally coming
At the 2019 Facebook Marketing Summit in the Netherlands, the company presented a slideshow demonstrating how it intends to work ads into
It intends to start inserting them into WhatsApp Status posts in 2020, with full-screen promotions that will appear in between updates from
your contacts.It's possible that these ads will tie into the ability for businesses to take payments in WhatsApp, letting them effectively
run whole stores there.No support for old phonesThere's a chance that the date may be pushed back depending on pressure from users, but
WhatsApp is due to stop supporting many older Android and iOS devices from February 1 2020. As explained on the app's FAQ page, devices
running operating systems older than Android 2.3.7 or iOS 8 will lose access to WhatsApp after that date
Essentially, that means if you have an iPhone 4 or older, or an Android device from before 2011 (such as the Google Nexus One or the
original Samsung Galaxy S), it’s unlikely you’ll be able to install WhatsApp from the App Store or Google Play.Reverse image
searchAccording to WABetaInfo, which specializes in tearing down pre-release apps in search of interesting hints of new features, one of the
new features to arrive in 2020 may be a reverse image search tool that will help you find out where a picture you've received originally
came from.It's likely that it's intended to help stem the spread of fake news through the app, much like the 'frequently forwarded' warning
that has rolled out to WhatsApp users in India, alerting them if a particular message has been passed along more than five times (probably
without any investigation into whether or not it's true).c2G9xtNbJsR2Ro8DvjsCtg.jpg?#
