WhatsApp has started to roll out the emoji-shortcut feature for Windows users. As per a report by WABetaInfo, the Facebook-owned platform has started to roll out a new update for the Universal Windows Platform app. The new update brings the version of the app up to 2.2206.1.0. According to the report, the company has added the emoji-shortcut feature with the update. For those who don’t know, the feature allows you to find an emoji just by typing on the keyboard. With this feature, you don’t have to scroll through the emoji panel to find the right emoji. We were also able to use this feature on the stable version 2.2202.12 of the app.
As per the screenshot shared by WABetaInfo, when you type a specific keyboard related to the emoji prefixed with a colon in front, you will be able to see the emojis related to the keyword. The feature was already available for WhatsApp web users. You can try the new feature by updating the app through the Microsoft Store.
WhatsApp released a new app for Windows operating system a few months ago. The app is largely based on the web version of the platform and is available to download from Microsoft Store. It is based on Universal Windows Platform (UWP), which means the app is able to sync in the background and receive notifications even when it is not running.
The platform is also reportedly improving some elements of UWP app user interface by bringing animations with the previous beta update. As per the report, WhatsApp has added a minor animation to the settings icon at the the top for beta users. The animation comes after a few elements of the app started following rules from the Windows UI Library 2.7 after the UWP 2.2201.2 update.