Arrr, me hearties! WhatsApp be sendin' voice messages that'll vanish like a cloud o' cannon smoke. For Android and iOS, yarrr!
2023-12-07
Avast ye scurvy dogs! These here temporary voice messages be a fine way to keep yer secrets safe. But beware, me hearties, for there be a few rules ye must heed.
WhatsApp has officially introduced a new feature that allows users to send temporary voice messages to their contacts. This feature, known as View Once messages, has actually been available in beta for the past two months. The official release does not bring any changes to the functionality of the feature. To send a View Once voice message, users hold down the record button, swipe up to lock it, and tap the View Once icon to activate it. The message is then sent with a timer attached to it.There are a few limitations to these self-destructing voice messages. Recipients have two weeks to listen to the recording, after which WhatsApp automatically deletes it if it goes unplayed. Users are unable to save, share, or forward these messages. It is possible to restore a recording from a backed-up chat room, but only if it was never opened by the recipient.
The update is rolling out globally to all WhatsApp users on Android and iOS devices. It is unclear if the same feature will be added to the desktop app, which recently gained the ability to send self-destructing images and videos. In the meantime, users can join TechRadar’s official WhatsApp channel to receive the latest reviews and news stories.
In addition to the View Once voice messages, WhatsApp on iOS has received an upgrade for sharing photos and videos, and it now allows users to use secret codes to lock private chats. The beta version of WhatsApp has also introduced an AI assistant to chats.