WhatsApp launches a very interesting new feature, which recalls the one already used by Snapchat: photos and videos can only be seen once
The new feature coming soon to WhatsApp is called View Once, literally “seen once”, and already explains its potential. The photos and videos, just like on Snapchat, disappear after being seen just once.
On the other hand, the owner of WhatsApp, Mark Zuckerberg, and the CEO of the messaging app Will Cathcart confirm the arrival for Android devices of what seemed only an indiscretion. It, therefore, seems that the new feature will arrive very soon in the testing phase for Android users, along with many other new features that developers have been working on for months.
It ranges from multi-device mode to be able to use the messaging app also on 4 other devices when the phone is disconnected, up to the possibility of listening to a voice again before sending it. All functions in the testing phase, but ever closer to enrich the offer of the app and counter fears about the new privacy policy that had hijacked users on the rivals Signal and Telegram.
WhatsApp Mimics Snapchat – What Is View Once
The name of the new function is a whole program. View Once indicates that the photos and videos will be viewable only once by the recipient, and then disappear from the chat immediately after the recipient closes them. The sender, on the other hand, will receive a notification that the multimedia contents have been opened.
View Once still has limitations, especially for privacy, compared to similar functions in other apps. If the user disables the read receipt, the recipient will continue to see when photos and videos of the View Once the type is opened, as well as those received and opened, are reported to the sender.
Unlike Telegram’s disappearing messages, the recipient will be able to take screenshots of the photo or video before it disappears, without WhatsApp sending notifications to the sender. The View Once photos and videos will then be shareable in groups and you will be able to see who opened them from the Info of the message. Also, by sending photos and videos that can be viewed once in a group where there is a blocked user, they will still be able to see the content.
In recent months we had heard of ” expiring media”, just like the rival Snapchat, but now we get to the heart with the first test phase for Android devices. If someone who has already received the function will send a View Once content, the recipient will only be able to view it once, even if the send function is not yet available for him.
WhatsApp: How To See If View Once Is Available
There is a way to check if you are among those who have received the rolling out of the new feature. After updating the WhatsApp app to the latest beta version available, when you share a photo or video in a chat, the one with a small “1” with a timer around it will also appear next to the Enter key. Selecting the new button will set the View Once function and you can try it out.
At the moment the function is available for the most recent version of WhatsApp Beta, which can also be downloaded from the Google Play Store, while other Android and especially iOS users will have to wait a little longer to try it.
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