WhatsApp rolls out video-calling feature for Android
Facebook-owned WhatsApp has started rolling out the much-anticipated video-calling feature for Android. The feature, which was first teased by the company back in May, is now available for the beta testers of the app.
WhatsApp users, who have signed up for the Android Beta Testing Program, can have access to the video-calling feature by downloading the latest build (v 2.16.319), which is available as an update via Google Play. The company, however, is yet to release the feature for the public.
The release of the video-calling feature for WhatsApp has not led to any significant changes in the app’s interface and design. The company has not added a separate video call icon to indicate the new feature. It, instead, has integrated it into the existing voice call icon. In other words, once upgraded to the latest version of the app, tapping on the call icon will give users options to choose between “Voice call” and “Video call”.
WhatsApp users can only make video calls to users who have the latest version of the app installed on their phones. The call, otherwise, wouldn’t get through.
To help you keep a track of your video calls, the call log section in WhatsApp clearly shows who all you made video calls to by putting up a video camera icon against names (contacts). The voice calls, similarly, are indicated by a call icon.
The video call feature on WhatsApp for Android appears a week after it was spotted in the Windows Phone beta. There is no word on when the same feature will make its way to iOS.
WhatsApp has been on a feature-updating spree ever since it was acquired by Facebook in February 2014 for $16 billion.
(WION)
