5 new WhatsApp features: avatars, hands-free video recording and more

Now you can create a WhatsApp avatar, improve Last Seen privacy, record hands-free videos, use drag and drop on iPhone, and more.

The Meta-owned app has been testing new features in recent weeks and months, and many of those tests seem to have moved on to full functionality.

Some new features, such as more granular Last Seen and Online controls, have been available to a subset of users for some time, but the update makes them available to all users. Others, such as drag and drop support on the iPhone, never made it into public beta. Here’s what’s new in WhatsApp for iOS version 23.2.75.

Other new features that are currently being tested may come soon. Among them are audio transcriptions and the ability to schedule calls in group chats.

1. Personalized avatar as your profile picture

Meta has been testing WhatsApp avatars since October 2022. After Instagram and Facebook avatars, the update allows anyone to create and use these Memoji-style representations of themselves, as well as use them as stickers and profile photos. To get started, go to WhatsApp Settings → Avatar. For more information on creating and using avatars, visit the WhatsApp Help Center.

2. Hands free video

In the past, WhatsApp required you to press and hold the shutter button to continue recording video with the in-app camera.

Well, now there’s an easier way to shoot video without having to keep the button pressed all the time. First, click the camera icon in the text input field as usual. Once inside the WhatsApp camera, swipe left to record a video hands-free. We weren’t able to get this feature to work as it was likely released in stages.

3. More detailed Last Seen and Online controls.

This feature has been phased in for almost a year now. With it, you can control who can see when you’re online, in more detail than before. Previously, you could set your Last Seen status to anyone who texts you on WhatsApp, only to those saved as your contacts, or to everyone.

The update allows you to restrict who can see when you last opened WhatsApp to only certain contacts (My contacts except…). Separately, you can set your online privacy to Everyone or As Last Seen. You can access these new options in Settings → Privacy → Last Seen & Online.

4. Drag

The updated software now allows you to use drag and drop in iOS to share content such as images, videos, and documents from Safari, Photos, Files, and other apps in WhatsApp chats. We have a tutorial explaining how to drag and drop items between apps on your iPhone. Some people have liked drag and drop support since early 2023, but now all WhatsApp users should have this handy feature.

5. Undo the “Delete for me”action.

Before the update, you couldn’t undo deleting a message for you. But now you can undo the “Delete for me”action if you accidentally chose it instead of “Delete for everyone”.

It’s important to remember one important thing: you only have five seconds to remember any message that you mistakenly deleted for yourself, not for everyone. This feature began rolling out in December 2022 and should now become more accessible.

How to immediately get new opportunities

The auto-update feature in iOS ensures that the apps installed on your device stay up-to-date by automatically downloading all available app updates from the App Store. The fact is that automatic updates are stretched over several days or weeks.

Instead of waiting, you can manually update your copy of WhatsApp to the latest version available. Just open the WhatsApp page in the App Store on your iPhone and click the “Update”button. After successfully installing the latest version, it is strongly recommended that you return to this article and try everything new.

Latest new features in WhatsApp

WhatsApp is rolling out several improvements designed to popularize the Status feature, such as voice statuses, status reactions, link previews, and more. WhatsApp also launched the ability to send messages to itself in the app and is still testing its own Catalyst-based app for macOS, which should replace the current Electron app.