Now You Can Do More On WhatsApp Group Video Calls

Image: BOL News

Since the pandemic, people have explored the need to collaborate virtually. Social media and tech giants have taken the initiative several times to make sure the virtual experience is enjoyable for users. One-on-one video calls are no longer an issue today because so many apps and software that support that. The issue today is to have as many people as possible on a single video call.

In a bid to compete with others, Meta has added plenty of features to their video calling app, WhatsApp. Different upgrades have happened to WhatsApp that you must know today. Originally WhatsApp supported seven people on the group calls, but today, it can now support 32 or more members. The news came on Thursday from the messaging app's head.

According to the Head of WhatsApp, Will Cathcart, on Thursday, the tech giant will gradually roll out all the new features for Android and iOS phones/devices. He also said the new features would be available on users' devices within the week. He revealed that the host of Group WhatsApp video calls now has the power to mute meeting members. This is good news because many a time, participants usually forget to mute themselves, thereby causing disturbance to others.

Apart from muting members, the host also is empowered to message meeting members during a call. The new WhatsApp features would make the overall experience on the messaging app an enjoyable one. These new features have thrown WhatsApp into the competitive waters with the virtual meeting giants like Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype etc. If they can pull this off, WhatsApp will be an alternative meeting app, and because it's easy to access with the phone, it might end up giving Zoom a run for its money.

The New WhatsApp Group Video Calls Features

1. Upgraded Number of participants:

WhatsApp Group Video call now supports 32 or more people simultaneously on a group call. This is a welcome development because many a time, people usually find it difficult to access other group meeting apps on their phones. Usually, some virtual meeting apps require your phone's software to be updated to a certain version before you can access it. On the other hand, accessing video calls on WhatsApp is usually very easy.

2. Notification for new members joining the group call:

With the increase in the number of participants in a call, there should be a form of control. Hence, if a call is ongoing when any new member joins the group call, a notification would pop up for all on the call to be aware of the presence of the new member. This is more like a regular meeting; once a meeting is on, all those in the meeting would notice any new member that joined the meeting.

3. Host Control Feature

The new feature bequeathed the host the ability to control the meeting. During a call, the host can mute participants on a call any time. The host also can send messages to participants individually during a call.

This is not the first time WhatsApp is adding new features to its app. The messaging giant keeps improving the app with different features. Recently, the app added chat reactions, enhanced audio notes, and link device features, making it possible to use your account on multiple devices (laptop or other devices). They also developed the ability to move files and chats from iOS to Android with ease.

Most recently, the groundbreaking feature was the ability of Android users to easily transfer their chats and files from Android to iOS (without third-party apps). As things unfold, we are on the lookout for more from WhatsApp.

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