Latest WhatsApp beta preps for Face Unlock support on Android, more

Damien Wilde | Oct 22 2020 - 7:49 am PT

WhatsApp evolution continues as there are now signs that the Facebook-owned messaging platform is preparing to bring support for Face Unlocking on Android and even the ability to join missed calls that are ongoing.

Resident WhatsApp code digger WABetaInfo found evidence that might perk up Pixel 4 owners, as the ability to secure your app looks like it will support Face Unlocks in future. It’s actually surprising that it has taken this long to even start work, as Android 10 brought in support for the biometric security method with the BiometricPrompt APIs available for devs.

This will also see “Fingerprint lock” within the app become “Biometric lock” simply due to the increased number of ways to securely lock WhatsApp — which you can see evidence of below:

Face unlocking has already been on iOS for some time now, which makes sense given the iPhone X first introduced FaceID back in 2017. There aren’t a great deal of Android devices that actually pack in face-scanning tech, so it’s unclear just how many devices will even be able to take advantage of this upcoming feature anyway.

Adding to WhatsApp’s functionality will be a feature that first appeared on Skype and Zoom — the ability to join ongoing calls even if you have missed a notification. You’ll be able to join a video call or voice call when you’re available at a later time, obviously provided the call is still ongoing. This might prove useful if you’re busy and can’t join right away.

As with almost all pre-release features such as these, there’s no indication if or when we might see face unlocks or latent call joining in a stable build of WhatsApp. Given just how long it takes to get almost essential features like a dark theme to come to the messenger, we’d imagine we’ll be waiting a while yet.