If you’ve ever wanted to send a big file via WhatsApp and were greeted with the fact that the chat app can’t send it for you — well, this might be ending soon, as WhatsApp is testing a new 2GB file size limit, reports iMore. The company has been looking into ways to improve the WhatsApp experience for its user, and this change is the latest effort Meta is pouring into the end-to-end encrypted chat service.
From 100MB to 2GB (big jump in file size limit on WhatsApp): coming soon
WABetaInfo discovered the new limit on files you can send via WhatsApp in the latest WhatsApp beta for Android and iOS. Currently, the new file size limit has only been rolled out to users in Argentina, but it will most likely be released globally soon too.
Before this update, WhatsApp had a limit of 100MB for files you wanted to send or receive on the chat service. With this new change, this limit will be raised significantly to 2GB. As we already mentioned above, the feature has rolled out to a small number of beta testers, currently located in Argentina.
It is important to mention that this is a test feature, so it is still possible WhatsApp could decide to backtrack on it and not release it globally, but we do hope it will be able to work out any bugs that it might have and release it to everyone. There is no timeline as of yet on this test and a possible subsequent official release of the feature.
WhatsApp is set on making you enjoy the app even more
This is just one of the many features that WhatsApp has currently been working on to make your experience on the app even better. One of the long-anticipated WhatsApp features that is about to become official is multi-device support.
We reported recently on the fact that the long-awaited and very useful multi-device support is now finally coming to both Android and iOS (it will first be released on iOS by the end of this month, and Android users should get it sometime in April).
Why is this WhatsApp feature so important? Well, for those of you who don’t know, currently you can use WhatsApp on PC or Mac to chat, but you need your iPhone or Android phone to be online at all times so that the chat will work. That is because WhatsApp is currently storing your identity key for the end-to-end encryption on your phone.
However, this is about to change with the new WhatsApp update that is coming. With it, you will be able to have your WhatsApp account on up to four additional devices, which you can use at all times without having your phone online as each of them will have its own identity key.
Another useful feature that WhatsApp introduced recently is the ability to react to messages sent on the chat app with emoji. Many of the existing instant messaging apps have this feature and WhatsApp is indeed a little bit late to it, but nevertheless, the feature was spotted in a recent beta of the app which means it can soon be officially released as well.
Once it becomes official, you will have six reactions to messages sent to you on WhatsApp: Like, Love, Laugh, Surprised, Sad, and Thanks.
And last but not least, another useful feature WhatsApp is working on is search shortcuts. Currently, you have a somewhat lengthy process to follow if you wish to search from your messages in WhatsApp, which includes locating a specific chat or group chat window, then tapping on the three-dots menu and searching. It seems that the app will be getting a simpler way to search for a message in a future update.
WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.22.6.3 brings the new search shortcut. Although it sounds similar to WhatsApp’s current solution for searches, it is different in the way that it allows you to search right from the info page of personal contacts and groups, without having to go to a specific group or chat where you think the message was sent.
