WhatsApp: ViewOnce, uncompressed images and videos and blocked chats
WhatsApp ViewOnce for voice messages
WhatsApp introduced the “ViewOnce” feature for photos and videos in August 2021, allowing users to send self-deleting images and videos. Now WhatsApp has extended this feature to voice messages. Disappearing voice messages work like photos and videos. After opening the voice message, you cannot listen to it again or save it to your phone. The sender also cannot listen to the message again after sending it.
However, the ViewOnce voice message displays the open icon after opening if the recipient has activated read receipts.
How to send View Once voice messages on WhatsApp?
- Open an individual or group chat.
- Tap the microphone.
- Swipe up to lock the recording.
- Tap and hold “Record.”
- Tap the ViewOnce icon (if it turns green, you’re in the correct mode).
- Tap the Send button.
WhatsApp says that for consistency with ViewOnce photos and videos, ViewOnce voice messages will also be marked with the “ViewOnce” icon. They are also end-to-end encrypted by default.
Send uncompressed images and videos on iOS
WhatsApp has also released an update for iOS that allows you to send images and video files in their original, uncompressed state. The feature does what you would expect – send media files from iPhones and iPads without compression. This is separate from the HD option that was introduced earlier this year, which would only slightly compress the files to retain more of the original quality.
To send images and videos in their original quality, you need to select the send documents option. Then comes an additional option to send photos or videos along with files. The selected image or video files are then sent unchanged in their original quality. However, WhatsApp has a 2GB limit for sending files uncompressed.
The feature has been in testing for some time, but was finally released to all users this week. Competing services such as Telegram have been offering this feature for years. Unfortunately, WhatsApp is only bringing this feature to iOS for now and there is no information about Android availability yet. Although Android users can still receive files of this size.
Hide WhatsApp chats from the chat list by a secret code
WhatsApp introduced the chat lock feature in May, which allows you to lock your chats with your device password or biometric data such as a fingerprint. These blocked chats are hidden behind a folder called “Blocked Chats” that appears in the chat list. Therefore, WhatsApp has now announced a new feature called Chat Lock Secret Code to add an additional layer of security and privacy to these locked chats.
The Secret Code feature allows you to set a password other than the device password to hide the Locked Chats folder from the chat list. You can then only reveal it by entering your personal secret code into the WhatsApp search bar. You can create a new secret code using letters, numbers, special characters and even emojis. However, you can also leave the blocked chats permanently displayed in the chat list.
Alternatively, you can simply lock a chat by long-pressing it instead of going to the chat settings. The introduction of the Secret Code function is already underway and will be rolled out worldwide for all users in the coming months.
