WhatsApp beta on Android adds voice note waveforms, ability to forward sticker packs

Damien Wilde | Jun 25 2021 - 3:48 am PT

The latest WhatsApp beta builds for Android have added a couple of minor new features to the cross-platform messaging application including voice note waveforms and the ability to forward in-app sticker packs.

We’ll agree that neither new addition is particularly groundbreaking, nor is WhatsApp the first to add such features. However, it’s still worth mentioning that the Facebook-owned app is still the biggest third-party mobile messaging platform on the planet, so this might prove to be a big deal for some people out there and, therefore, notable nonetheless.

WABetaInfo spotted the rollout of both new features, which came in two beta builds just days apart. WhatsApp v2.21.13.15 added the ability to forward any sticker packs you have installed to contacts, while v2.21.13.17 was the first to add proper waveforms to any sent or received voice notes. The latter addition is a nice UI tweak that improves on the basic timeline with a scrubber that has existed for a long time:

whatsapp voice note waveform — new voice note waveform

As for the ability to forward sticker packs, this might be a great way to share discontinued options that have disappeared or are only available in selected WhatsApp sticker stores. WABetaInfo notes that this feature doesn’t yet allow you to forward sticker packs from third parties at this present moment, meaning it is limited to those downloaded from WhatsApp directly.

If you have updated to WhatsApp beta v2.21.13.15 then according to WABetaInfo, you should already have the ability to forward any of your installed sticker packs. To see the new voice note waveforms, you’ll need to update to WhatsApp beta v2.21.13.17 from the Google Play Store — provided you’re enrolled on the beta program.