WhatsApp has become the single most frequently-used messaging app. No matter how many other popular services pop up like Messenger, Viber, and Hike, WhatsApp holds a special irreplaceable space on our smartphones. But even though we all use WhatsApp multiple times in every single day, we may still miss those valuable, yet tiny, features. WhatsApp is packed with features and workaround that you may not know of. Here are 15 WhatsApp tips and tricks to get the most out of your messaging experience.
Get around ticks.
It’s so useful to know whether or not the person you’re texting to has received your message. But it’s also a pain that you can’t ignore anyone without them knowing about it. Fortunately, you can disable read receipts. The only problem with this is that it works both ways; if you disable read receipts for your contacts, you can’t tell when they’ve read your messages too. You can do this under Settings -> Account -> Privacy -> Read Receipts and unselect the checkbox.
Or, you can read your contacts’ messages without disabling read receipts, and without those blue ticks. Before you open up WhatsApp, enable Aeroplane Mode and then launch the app. Check out who’s read your messages in a group.
Check out who’s read your messages in a group.
When you’re a part of a group and want to know who exactly has read your message and when you can do so by long-pressing your message. If you’re on Android, hit the Information option. For an iOS user, you just have to swipe your message from left to right.
Hide when you were last seen.
This is the best way to get away from tech-savvy parents or nagging friends. Go to Settings -> Account -> Privacy and Last Seen. Just like with the ticks, this feature works both ways, too. If no one else can see when you were last online, you can’t see that about anyone else either.
Mute noisy groups.
We’ll sympathize with you if a certain group is getting on your nerves. WhatsApp groups tend to do that. Luckily, you can mute a group. On Android, you can do this by hitting Menu and then Mute. On the iPhone, the option is available under Group Info.
Limit data usage.
WhatsApp is great, but it also saps a lot of your data. You can limit data usage by limiting the types of media that you download on a certain connection. You’ll find the Data Usage option under Settings where you can customize your automatic download preferences and WhatsApp calls.
Get some space.
It always helps to know how much space you have and where you can get more. Check out your Storage Usage under Settings -> Data and Storage Usage. You can see how much space your chat messages, photos, and videos take up. Just keep what you need and get rid of the rest.
Keep favorite chats on your home screen.
This is only for Android users. You can save favorite or frequent chats as shortcuts on your home screen. All you have to do is tap and hold a chat message and select Add Chat Shortcut.
Personalize your notifications.
Create your own notification message. Tap on the bar above a conversation and choose Custom Notifications. Available on bith iOS and Android.
Use fancy formatting.
It’s not much, but it helps when you feel like showing off. Bold your messages with asterisks (like *this*), italicize with underscores (like _this_), or strikethrough with tildes (like ~this~).
Don’t type, dictate.
This handy feature is an iOS 10 exclusive. You can get Siri to type out your messages while you dictate.
Mark with stars or make unread.
Sometimes you need an indication to remind you to take a second look at your messages. Tap and hold a message and hit the star icon. You’ll see all your Starred Messages in the main menu. Or if you want to mark a message as unread, long-press a chat and tap Mark as Unread if you’re an Android user. If you’re on iOS, swipe from left to right.
Export chats as emails.
Send entire chat messages as an email thread. It will include the emojis in your conversations and you can choose which media to include or exclude. If you’re on Android, you can find the Email Chat option under More in your conversation menu. As for iOS, the same option will appear when you tap on the top bar of your chat.
Send the same message to many.
You don’t have to forcefully put your friends into a group just because you want to send the same message to all of them. You can, instead, open up the WhatsApp main menu and select New Broadcast.
Limit your previews.
Most of the times, you don’t want WhatsApp to show the message you’re receiving in the preview. There’s always someone near you who might notice the message and then it would just be awkward. Good news is that you can limit previews to show only the contact’s name. Go to Settings -> Notifications – > Show Preview on iOS. On Android, however, you won’t find a way to do this directly, but you can control your previews under the Notifications section.
Get on the web.
WhatsApp is a great tool, but honestly, you’re not going to land that promotion if your colleagues notice you typing away feverishly on your phone. That’s why it’s best to download the WhatsApp desktop app. It’s available for Windows and Mac. Alternatively, you can open up WhatsApp on the web. You’ll have to scan a QR code to log in, but that’s far more convenient that scrutinizing your phone.
Well, that’s our list. What do you think of these features? Did we miss anything that you’d like to share?
