Popular messaging app WhatsApp is rolling out a read receipt feature that will let users know when their messages have been read. With the new WhatsApp feature users will notice two blue tick marks next to a message they've sent, which is actually an indication that the recipient has seen the message.
Thanks to the recent app update, Android, iPhone, and Windows Phone users will now see two blue tick marks that will function as a 'read receipt' . Earlier versions of the app showed a grey double tick mark which indicated the message has been delivered.
(Also see: Why WhatsApp Blue Ticks Have Really Ticked Us Off)
WhatsApp has also updated its FAQ pages titled "How can I tell if someone has read my message?" and "What are those check marks next to my messages?"
In addition to the read receipts, WhatsApp has also rolled out the Message Info screen that now displays details of a message. The FAQ page notes, "For any message that you send, you will be able to see a Message Info screen, displaying the details of when your message was delivered, read or played by the recipient(s)." Users can check Message Info by tapping and holding a sent message.
In other news, the long-awaited voice-calling or VOIP (Voice over IP) feature has again been spotted, this time via leaked icons. A Dutch publication (via 9to5mac) has posted icons for missed calls, start call, end call, incoming and outgoing calls, and new call from an Android app. The publication has also shared a tone it claims will be the dial tone for WhatsApp.
WhatsApp recently announced a delay in its plan of introducing the free voice-calling feature this year, pushing back the launch to the first quarter of 2015. WhatsApp CEO, Jan Koum, claimed that the firm still had several technical issues to overcome before it could successfully launch seamless voice calling. Koum noted issues like how the app doesn't have access to certain microphones on the smartphone to properly enable noise cancellation.
Koum also added that the WhatsApp development team was looking for ways to implement the voice calling service in poor data coverage areas, considering that many WhatsApp users in emerging markets were still on 2G networks.
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