The popular instant messaging application, Whatsapp has brought new updates for its iOS and Android platforms, both with different features, while it has also announced that it will stop supporting other dying platforms like Symbian 40, Symbian 60, BlackBerry devices (BB10 included), Android 2.1 and 2.2 devices and Windows Phone 7.1.
Android:
The update for Android platform brings many new features like shared link history tab, URL copy and clearing chat history. The shared link history tab allows users to easily browse through the shared links and it will appear with rich preview and on tapping will open the chat conversation. It also has media history tab, that shows all the images and videos shared on it. Another interesting feature, that comes with new update is the link copying by just tap and hold. In earlier Android builds, user was not allowed to copy only link, it asked to copy whole chat including URL. Whatsapp for Android now offers more option while clearing chat conversation, it now asks to delete chats older than 30 days or 6 months with a warning for deleting starred messages.
iOS:
Moving on to the iOS platform, the latest version of Whatsapp now allows to share photos and videos with your contacts from sources beyond your camera library. You can now share photos or videos from other apps installed on your phone, like Google Drive, Dropbox, or Microsoft OneDrive. Another feature it got, is its ability to zoom into video while it is playing.
Withdrawing support from dying platforms…
Meanwhile, Whatsapp has also announced that it will withdraw its support from the dying platforms as around 99% of market is compromised with Android, iOS and Windows OS platform.
Speaking on this tough decision, company says, “While these mobile devices have been an important part of our story, they don’t offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app’s features in the future. This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp. If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone before the end of 2016 to continue using WhatsApp.”