WhatsApp is reportedly gearing up to roll out a new beta update for iOS users. The 2.22.1.1 version will be the platform’s first beta update for the new year. As spotted by WABetaInfo, the update comes with hidden references about a feature that will allow users to create Communities in future updates. Similar hidden reference was also spotted on the beta update released for Android smartphones two weeks ago. For those who don’t know, the Facebook owned messaging platform has been working on a Community feature for a while.
Now, according to recent screenshots shared by WABetaInfo, a Community has a name and a description, as seen on a Group. After entering the name and the description, users will get an option to create a new Group or link up to 10 Groups. A ‘Announcement’ Group is also seen in the Community. The report suggests that WhatsApp will automatically create this group for admins. Using this Group admins will share a message to all the linked Groups.
The report further reveals that when users join a community, they won’t be able to view groups that have been unlinked. In addition, when users leave a community, they won’t be able to view linked Groups to the Community anymore. The feature will be quite similar to how multiple channels are arranged under an umbrella Discord community. WhatsApp has not yet revealed any official detail about the feature but the report suggests that it will take a lot of time until it is rolled out to the public.
The Facebook owned platform is also reportedly working on new animating heart emojis for Android and iOS users. Currently, when users send a red heart emoji, they see an animation where the heart appears to be beating. The animation effect is only limited to the red colour heart emoji but a report by WABetaInfo suggests that WhatsApp is working to add the animated effect to more emojis. According to the report, the platform will soon introduce the same animation for all other heart emojis. WhatsApp currently has nine heart emojis including the animated one.