WhatsApp is undoubtedly looking at video as the next gen method of communication, as it has not even been a week since the video calling feature was introduced that it has brought a new facility in the app. The biggest messaging app in the world is now planning to add the option of video streaming feature inside the application. WhatsApp users, reportedly, will be able to see a video shared by their contacts even while it is getting downloaded by using the streaming option on the app. As of now, the latest feature is present on WhatsApp beta version 2.16.365 for Android smartphone users. Before this, people could view a shared video only after it was downloaded.
Now in the beta app, WhatsApp has replaced the ‘Download’ button with a ‘Play’ option which when pressed will start streaming videos while buffering in itself, almost like the Facebook videos. It is also same as that of YouTube videos, which can be viewed in parts which have already been buffered. The feature is just in the testing phase and WhatsApp will hopefully release it for every user soon. This feature comes as a relief for many, as they have often complained about how the messaging app had dealt with videos on the app as a message as well as a calling feature. This new move can save the user some time which is generally wasted which downloading the video. Add to it, the fact that there are many videos the user might not want to watch, but had to download all of it to be sure. That concern can be done away with.
WhatsApp recently unveiled its much anticipated video-calling feature for all operating systems. The latest feature is available for download and also as an update for all users. WhatsApp had opened the video-calling feature for all users on November 15 for its billion users out of which India has the biggest market with 160 million users.
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Facebook as always been a revolutionary when it comes to virtual communication, from texts to voice to videos. WhatsApp has rolled out its features with long gaps. After the app launched in 2009, it introduced group chats only in 2011 and voice chat four years after that. Facebook had bought WhatsApp in 2014 for $22 billion, and this year has been the most productive for the app, with the addition of end to end encryption, desktop versions, gifs and doodles and much more.
