WhatsApp's Group Audio And Video Calling Features Arrive On iPhone And Android
Amit Chowdhry Contributor i
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Consumer Tech Tech enthusiast, born in Ann Arbor and educated at Michigan State

Group video calling feature on WhatsAppWhatsApp

Facebook-owned WhatsApp is now rolling out the group audio and video calling feature to all of its iPhone and Android users -- which was originally announced at the F8 conference back in May. WhatsApp reported it was hitting 1.5 billion monthly users back in January and now the app is seeing over 2 billion minutes on calls made and over 60 billion messages sent per day.

"Group calls are always end-to-end encrypted, and we've designed calling to work reliably around the world in different network conditions," said WhatsApp in a blog post. To add a participant to a call, you simply have to tap on the “add participant” button at the top-right corner of the app. That participant will receive a notification to join the group call and can decide whether to accept or decline the invitation.

The group voice and video calling feature supports up to four concurrent participants. While this new WhatsApp feature works very well for setting up smaller group chats, it is not ideal for larger conference calls. As a comparison, Skype’s video calls include up to 25 participants, Google Hangouts video supports up to 25 people and Facebook’s Messenger app can have up to 50 participants. Facebook’s photo social network company Instagram also added video chat last month. And when Apple rolls out iOS 12 in September, it will have Group FaceTime with support for up to 32 people.

Another feature that WhatsApp recently added to its app is the ability for just admins to be able to send messages to a group. WhatsApp said that this was a way for Groups to simply receive “important announcements and information, including parents and teachers at schools, community centers, and non-profit organizations.” And a couple of months ago, WhatsApp added the ability for admins to add Group descriptions (information displayed at the top of the chat when a new user joins), administrative controls over who can change the group subject/icon/description, a Group catch-up feature that is accessed by tapping on the @ button at the bottom-right corner of a chat and a participant search feature placed under Group Info.

Read More:

- WhatsApp Adds A New Setting Allowing Only Admins To Send Group Messages

- 32 Of The Best WhatsApp Tips And Tricks For 2018

I have written over 20,000 articles about startups, gadgets and large technology companies over the last ten years. My Forbes column focuses on the tech economy, startups and gadgets. When I am not writing for Forbes, I spend time hanging out with my wife around metro Detroi...

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