The new functionality would mean users no longer have to rely on workarounds
(Picture: PA Archive)Talking to yourself may be seen as a little eccentric, but it’s something that WhatsApp is actively encouraging with its latest update.
Starting today, the app is rolling out a new feature that makes it easier to send notes, reminders, and updates to yourself.
Now, when you create a new chat you’ll see your own contact at the top of the list, which you can select to start chatting with yourself. At the time of writing, the new feature didn’t appear to be live on iPhone in the UK, though WhatsApp confirmed to the Evening Standard that it will be available to all iOS and Android users in the coming weeks.
The update is ideal for those who want to use WhatsApp as more than just a messaging tool. The app already allows you to link up to four devices via WhatsApp web, meaning you can use it to quickly send files from your laptop to your phone and vice versa.
Alternatively, others will simply use the ability to message themselves as a reminder system that’s a bit less hassle than setting up a calendar appointment. Why bother opening a dedicated note-taking app when you can just message yourself a shopping list?
It doesn’t look like it’s going to be especially advanced – at least not in its earliest iteration – so you won’t be able to send yourself a timed message that will trigger exactly when you need it or anything. All the same, this should be a useful solution for those who currently find themselves in an echoey WhatsApp group of one.
The feature was first spotted by the WhatsApp experts at WABetaInfo in late October when it was being tested on beta users.
To be clear, if you really want to talk to yourself on WhatsApp, this has always been an option, but it’s in the “workarounds” category rather than a feature that’s actively promoted by WhatsApp. Users wanting to message themselves previously had to create themselves as a contact on their phone, use a Click to Message link, or set up a WhatsApp group with just themselves as a member.
This formalises the option of sending WhatsApp messages to yourself, but some of you may still be wondering why anybody would bother.
