WhatsApp is going to get a feature typically associated with Instagram, the double-tap-to-like.
A quick double tap adds a “heart” reaction emoji to messages in the latest WhatsApp beta, according to WABetaInfo.
The feature is being tested in the beta version of the app for Android, suggesting it will appear in the public build in a future update.
The quickest way to get access to it will be as part of the WhatsApp Beta programme, which just received a WhatsApp 2.24.16.8 update, although right now that programme is not open to new members, according to the Google Play store.
It makes sense for Instagram and WhatsApp to share some key input conventions. They are, after all, both owned by Meta.
However, the one slightly contentious part is there are reportedly no plans to introduce a switch for this gesture, which could lead to a lot of accidental heart emojis from the less techy and swift-fingered WhatsApp users.
The last major change to WhatsApp, and one you may have missed, is the addition of Events for groups. These were introduced in May. And just as the double tap to like is an Instagram move, Events are similar to another Meta property: Facebook.
When you tap the paperclip button by the text entry box, you should see the Event shortcut in the pop-up menu.
It can be given a name, location and time, as well as a WhatsApp video call link — presumably for video meetings rather than those down at the pub.
The app has an estimated 30 million users in the UK, and it has just hit a 100-million-user milestone in the US, where WhatsApp is traditionally seen as less popular. After all, the US has five times the population of the UK, but only roughly three times its WhatApp user count.
