If you aren’t already using Whatsapp on a daily basis, you need to try it! We use it for family chats, keeping in contact with those abroad, organising golf games, swimming clubs and just general banter. And we’re not the only ones! There are over 1 billion users worldwide.
Even if you’re using it every day, here are some cool tricks and features that you might not be aware of.
1. Mute buzzing group chats
If you have one or two group messages that are constantly sending you notifications or if you’re sick of getting woken up in the middle of the night by your family in Australia or the US, you can mute the chat for eight hours, a week or a year. Go into the chat, and tap the name of the group -> Mute -> select the amount of time. You can also mute notifications on one-to-one chats.
2. Send a giant heart
Awwww! All you need to do is send a red heart emoji on it’s own and it appears as a huge pulsing heart.
3. Use WhatsApp on your computer
You can send and receive WhatsApp messages on your computer using Whatsapp web.
To use WhatsApp Web go to web.whatsapp.com on your computer and Settings -> WhatsApp Web on your phone. Scan the QR code displayed on your desktop screen using your phone’s camera until they connect. The browser version of the app will only work if your phone remains switched on, connected to Wi-Fi, and near the computer.
If you want to keep WhatsApp running on your computer more permanently you can download the desktop app.
4. Add a homescreen shortcut for your most-used chats
This is only for Android phones at the moment. If you have an android phone, you can set up a homescreen icon that links directly to your favourite chats by tapping and holding on the chat and selecting Add Conversation Shortcut. An icon will appear on your homescreen.
5. Stop clogging up your phone with automatically-saved images
This is a good one if your phone is starting to run out of memory. Stop photos that are sent via Whatsapp automatically saving to your phone’s Photo stream by going to Settings -> Chats -> turn off Save Incoming Media
6. Browse all images sent on a group chat
Sometimes it’s nice to browse through all of the images and videos that have been sent on a chat. Go into the chat, tap on the chat name on the top of the screen and then tap on Media, Links and Docs. Enjoy!
7. Send message to multiple people without creating a ‘group’
If you want to send the same message to multiple people but don’t want them to know, you need to use a ‘Broadcast List’. Tap Broadcast List on the top left of your whatsapp app -> New List.
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