WhatsApp in March: All the Features You Should Be Taking Advantage Of

WhatsApp is turning 10 this year after it was bought by Meta in 2014 and has grown to become a popular messaging platform now with over 3 billion users worldwide with users sending over 300 billion messages and 8 billion voice messages across the app.

It remains free to use with no ads – at least for individuals as businesses pay Meta a 3.99% charge per received transaction.

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As the new month rolls in, here are the features you should take advantage of in March.

Advanced Text Formatting

WhatsApp now has advanced text formatting features which let you make inline code, block quotes, bulleted list and numbered lists. The four formats add to the rest of the options including bold, strikethrough, monospace and italics already available in the app.

Block Spam Accounts Right From Your Lock Screen

To fight spam messages, WhatsApp is rolling the ability to block spam accounts right from your lock screen. This means you can block suspicious messages and phishing attempts without even opening the app or the message as there’s a button available on WhatsApp message notifications which lets you directly block them.

Star Favourite Chats For Quick Access

WhatsApp now has a Favourites feature that lets you separate your frequently contacted chats from the main chat so you can easily keep up with important conversations.

The Favourites feature appears as a filter and will display chats in chronological order.

Pin Broadcast Channels

You can now pin a few channels to get quick access to updates from businesses or people you’re subscribed to. Now you can prioritise channels you frequently check with this new feature.

Custom Colours

If you don’t like the green brand colour of WhatsApp, you can now change the colour with options ranging from Blue, White, Purple and Pink.

You’ll also soon be able to change the colour of some elements of the user interface such as the chat bubbles.

Using Two Accounts on the Same App

WhatsApp rolled out this feature for everyone last month that lets you add another number to the app meaning you can have two accounts running on the same app.

Simply head to your account on the settings page. You’ll see the QR code and next to it will be a drop-down icon to add another account.

To switch between accounts, head to the three-dot menu available on the chats tab, Updates tab, Communities tab, and Calls tab. The option to switch will be the last one and tapping on it leads you to your other account.

Now you can ditch using a WhatsApp business account for your secondary number.

Instagram Style Reply Interface for Status Updates

There’s now a permanent reply bar on the Status feature for quick replies instead of taking the extra step to swipe and then reply.

Meta is trying to unify the design across its apps and its no surprise that you’ll soon be able to post your ephemeral status updates to Instagram stories so this design change makes a lot of sense.

Posting Updates From Linked Devices

WhatsApp fixed the issue of only viewing status updates from linked devices by adding the ability to post from the companion device.

This feature lets you edit or delete your status update(voice, GIF, text, video/photo) from a secondary device.

Here Are Other Features That WhatsApp Is Working On

Pinned Events for Community Group Chats: The group chat section will now have an event reminder icon pinned at the top for easy access so the members remain notified.
Support for Third-Party Chat Interoperability: WhatsApp is working on this third-party chat feature in compliance with the DMA which means someone on Signal or Telegram can text a WhatsApp user without having a WhatsApp account and vice-versa.
Passkey Support for Account Verification: This will make signing in to your account easier and the passkey support feature will be included in the app with its section. There will be no need to key in the 6-digit code to log in to your account.
End-To-End Encryption Icon on Chats: WhatsApp is working to show users that their chats are indeed private and end-to-end encrypted by default and to assure users of this feature, they’re now placing the caption just under the chat head.
New Way To Post Status Updates: WhatsApp has simplified how to post status updates by moving the floating action buttons from the bottom to the top next to the status header.
Lock Chats More Securely Behind a Code: You can now use a unique password to lock your chats by simply long-pressing the conversation in the chat list and then tapping on the Lock Chat option.
Sending High-Quality Photos and Videos on Status: There’s a HD icon on the status editing tab which lets you switch between standard and high-resolution quality for the video and photo you’re sharing.
Sending View-Once Audio Messages: Adding to view-once images and videos, WhatsApp now supports view-once audio messages. Recipients get to play the audio only once.
Username-Based Search: You’ll soon be able to set a username for yourself which makes it easier when searching for an account to add instead of using a phone number.