A powerful feature related to privacy is about to come on the messaging platform WhatsApp. According to reports, the company is testing a new ‘After Reading’ mode to make messages disappear automatically. This feature has already been made available to beta users on iPhone. This feature is separate from the existing ‘Disappearing Messages’ function, and there are significant differences in how they work. Let us see how this feature will work and what benefits it will provide to the users.
How will ‘After Reading’ option work on WhatsApp?
With this new option, WhatsApp is adding a new layer of privacy to its ‘invisible messages’ feature. Now, when setting a message timer, users will be able to choose an option that will make messages disappear immediately after being read. Additionally, users will also have the option to set a specific time limit, such as 5 minutes, 1 hour, or 12 hours. If a user does not read the message, it will automatically disappear after 24 hours. A special thing about this feature is that its timer **starts** only when the message is viewed. This feature can be used for both personal chat and group chat. Apart from acting as a privacy setting, this will also help save device storage.
How is this new mode different from the standard ‘Disappearing Messages’ feature?
The option of ‘Disappearing Messages’ is already available on WhatsApp. In that mode, users can set a specific time limit, such as 24 hours, 7 days, or 90 days. This time limit starts from the moment the timer message is sent.
When can we expect this new feature to arrive?
WhatsApp has already introduced the ‘After Reading’ feature for beta users on iPhone. There is speculation that testing of this feature on Android devices may start soon. It is expected that this feature will be officially launched for all users in the next few weeks.
The wait for paid subscription of WhatsApp may also end soon
Along with this feature, WhatsApp is also testing its paid subscription service, ‘WhatsApp Plus’. This service has been launched in some selected areas of Europe. This plan is priced at around ₹300 per month, which gives users features like exclusive stickers, option to pin up to 20 chats, new app icons, and special ringtones. Going forward, the company can add more new features to this plan.