WhatsApp recently increased the file-sharing support to 2GB and now it is testing a feature to allow you to send files or photos with people nearby without using the internet. This offline mode is presently being tested with the Android Beta version of WhatsApp which shows permission on your phone to access nearby devices, your photo gallery on the phone and the location of the device as well.
The positive outcome of this feature is that one can manually disable the access at any point. Rumours were in the air regarding the offline sharing feature earlier as well, however, a beta testing phase for the tool suggests that the official release may not be far.
One can say that most of the apps in the present times need the internet to be effective but this initiative by WhatsApp will be an interesting turn of events especially when users' content will be shared with contacts or nearby people with its full range of encryption in place.
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WhatsApp To Give Details With New Section
The instant messaging platform is also testing a new way to give these details with the help of a new section when you click on the '+' icon which appears at the bottom of your screen. This new feature is currently being tested for Android users who are using version 2.24.9.14 as mentioned by WABetaInfo in its latest post this week. It is basically adding a new tab in its interface called 'Recently Online' right above the section where all names of all your contacts on WhatsApp will be visible.
WABetaInfo highlighted, “While this feature doesn’t provide a comprehensive online list of all contacts, it effectively simulates such functionality by displaying a limited number of recent active contacts, particularly when attempting to select contacts to place a call with.”