Technical / WhatsApp adds call waiting feature for Android users: How it works

Hindustan Times : Dec 09, 2019, 01:20 PM
WhatsApp last week rolled out a new update for Android users. The new update brings an important change to how it handled calling feature on the app. Users with the updated WhatsApp app will now get a call waiting alert – similar to how regular call waiting works.

The latest Call waiting is available for v2.19.352 stable (APK Mirror) and above of WhatsApp, and v2.19.128 (APK Mirror) of WhatsApp Business. Apple iPhone users already have the call waiting feature.

WhatsApp introduced calling functionality in the app almost four years ago. Since then, WhatsApp has improved the section with newer features such as group voice calling and ability to switch to video during the call. The app, however, did not have a call waiting functionality. Users received a missed call alert after the call ended while the caller got an engage tone or full ring with no response.

The latest update, however, fixes this problem. Receiver now gets an alert that someone is calling during the call and will have the option to end the current call and accept the incoming call. They can reject the call as well.

WhatsApp’s call waiting feature, however, isn’t perfect, yet. The app still doesn’t give you the option to merge the two calls, like you can do with regular calls. There’s still no option to put the existing call on wait and take the incoming call in between.

Apart from the call waiting feature, WhatsApp’s new beta update has rought three new options for dark mode on the app. The light theme shows a white background whereas Dark theme enables the dark mode on WhatsApp, according to WABetaInfo.

There’s a newer ‘Set by Battery Saver’ option wherein the dark mode is activated on the basis of smartphone’s battery levels. This feature is going to be available only for smartphones running on Android 9.0 or older.

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