WhatsApp already allows you to do this today voice calls with a maximum number of 32 participants. Over the next few weeks, however, the instant messaging client will deliver a new tool to its entire user base voice chats. This is an innovation aimed in particular at WhatsApp groups made up of a large number of users.
The objective is to avoid, as happens with traditional voice calls, that each user’s smartphone rings at the same time: each participant will be able to participate with their own voice comment when they deem it appropriate.
What are the new WhatsApp voice chats and how do they work
In beta testing for a few months now, WhatsApp voice chats are now confirmed with an official announcement. The new feature prevents each chat participant from being called individually. Instead, one push notification informs you about the existence of a voice chat within a specific discussion, inviting you to offer your contribution.
By tapping on the notification, WhatsApp pops up a message at the bottom of the application with the button Start voice chat. The novelty closely resembles the behavior of an application like Discord.
Once a voice chat is started, i call controls become accessible at the top of the WhatsApp screen: the possibility for each participant to send a message remains unchanged text message instead of a vocal one.
Voice chats are available for i groups of 33 to 128 people and accessible only via the main device where WhatsApp is installed.
Group members who are not part of the voice chat can see the profiles of the people present in the voice chattapping the chat header and referring to the section Calls.
Every voice chat ends once all participants leave, in the event that no one joins after the first person or within 60 minutes from the moment the last user entered the chat itself.
Voice chats are not, for now, an alternative to voice calls
Other platforms for video conferencing allow you to start voice calls exceeding the limit of 32 participants. The impression is that this time the company owned by Meta wanted to present a tool that allows you to communicate in a “human” way within very busy groups.
Rather than further increase the number of people who can participate in the group voice calls, it was decided to introduce a new feature – voice chats – which are currently limited only to groups of 33-128 users. It is not excluded that the same innovation could also be extended to groups with an even number in the future less than 32 members.
WhatsApp confirms that voice chats will debut in the Android and iOS versions of the app within a few weeks.
