WhatsApp may not be huge in the US but for Europe it is the main internet messaging platform of choice, sometimes over Facebook Messenger. WhatsApp is owned by Facebook, so the monopoly rolls on.
A new beta version of WhatApp includes a new disappearing messages feature according to Wabetainfo. It’s perhaps a little harsh to point out that Facebook loves to steal from Snapchat, but it’s true – Instagram, also owned by Facebook, plain stole the idea of disappearing videos for its Stories feature which is now incredibly popular. Disappearing messages are also a feature of Snapchat’s chat mode.
WhatsApp is end to end encrypted so is relatively private but for those occasions where you want to send someone a message that will evaporate, you could be in luck.
WhatsApp is pretty straight app – it does messaging well and the design has barely ever changed. Status updates were introduced and completely flopped. If the app gains disappearing messages it’ll more likely succeed seeing as it’s a text-first feature that works in the context of the app.
The below screenshot shows the odd two expiration time options of 5 seconds or an hour. We’d think that these would change before it is released. The settings menu also shows that this might be an option that only works in group chats rather than direct messages to one person.
Image: Wabetainfo
Author: Henry Burrell, Phones Editor
Henry is Tech Advisor’s Phones Editor, ensuring he and the team covers and reviews every smartphone worth knowing about for readers and viewers all over the world. He spends a lot of time moving between different handsets and shouting at WhatsApp to support multiple devices at once.