WhatsApp has resumed development on its “Vacation Mode” feature for the Android version of its messaging app, according to a report by WABetaInfo.
The company submitted a new update through the Google Play Beta Programme which includes code related to a number of upcoming changes.
Chief among these changes is the resumption of development on the ability to ignore archived chats within the application – a feature which was originally named Vacation Mode.
Currently, chats which are archived by users are automatically unarchived again when a new message is received.
WhatsApp is working on a setting which will allow users to ignore archived chats, however, which means these chats will not be automatically unarchived when new messages arrive.
Once it is launched, this option will be available under a separate Notifications tab within the Archived Chats menu.
This section will reportedly include two toggles:
- Notify new messages – Disabling this feature hides notifications from archived chats, which provides the Vacation Mode functionality.
- Auto-hide inactive chats – If enabled, chats older than six months will be automatically archived.
Another feature included in the most recent beta update for the Android version of WhatsApp is the inclusion of guidelines when adding stickers, text, and emojis to media such as pictures and video.
New iOS features
WABetaInfo also reported that a number of features are in development for the iOS version of the app.
The report stated that changes made to the latest beta version of WhatsApp for iOS include the following:
- Improved payments for particular countries
- Improved loading speed for images, videos, and GIFs
- New call termination tone
- New ringtone for group calls
These features are currently under development and are not yet available to WhatsApp users on Android or iOS.