What you need to know
- WhatsApp appears to be working on a new feature that will let users edit messages after they were already sent.
- This feature was apparently in the works years ago before being scrapped.
- It's unclear when the feature will arrive for beta users, but it'll likely come to Android, iOS, and desktop.
Typos are never fun, and the slip of a letter can easily make things very awkward. Some apps already let you edit posts or messages after the fact, but it seems like WhatsApp wants to get in on the fun.
WaBetaInfo caught wind of a new feature hidden in the WhatsApp beta that will allow users to edit their texts. From the images, it appears that users can select a message and hit the three-dot menu in the top right corner, which will reveal a new "Edit" option alongside "Info" and "Copy."
After hitting "Edit," the selected text will appear in the text editor, where you can likely edit to your heart's desire.
WaBetaInfo notes that there doesn't appear to be an indication of an edit history feature to show previous versions of a message, which would help keep users accountable should they decide to completely change the meaning of a message. That said, the feature is still in development, so that could change when it finally arrives.
For now, it doesn't appear to be available at the moment for beta users, although it may only be a matter of time, assuming WhatsApp doesn't blackout. According to WaBetaInfo, this is a feature the app was previously working on years ago, but it apparently got scrapped for some unknown reason.
When (or if) it arrives, it will likely be available on Android phones, iOS devices, and desktop versions of WhatsApp.
WhatsApp is not the only app working on an edit button, as Twitter is expected to begin testing its own edit button this summer. Given the nature of the social media platform, it seems likely that Twitter will show some sort of edit history for accountability, but for now, we know little about the platform's implementation.
Hopefully, WhatsApp's inclusion of the feature will signal a similar move for Meta's Messenger app.
