WhatsApp now saves unfinished chat messages as drafts

WhatsApp has introduced drafts – a new functionality where unfinished messages in a chat are automatically saved and labelled so it is easier to find them later. Drafts in WhatsApp are similar to its counterparts in most email services, where users can save messages in a dedicated folder to attend to later. The new functionality is now rolling out to WhatsApp's Android and iOS apps, while its Web and macOS versions will receive it in the coming days.

“WhatsApp now has drafts, making it easy to find and send unfinished messages,” said Meta's co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Mark Zuckerberg in a post on his channel. “We all need this,” he added.

How to use WhatsApp drafts

It is a simple feature where users are not required to do anything. WhatsApp will automatically show “Draft” in green colour, followed by the text inputted, under a chat's name if a user left a message, intended to be sent to the recipient, unfinished. The green-coloured label will make it easy for users to find a message from the list and continue from where they left off – or, they could delete the draft by erasing the text saved to the chat. The recipient cannot see the drafts unless they are sent as chat messages.

In other news, WhatsApp is reportedly working to streamline chat groups, especially the ones with a higher number of participants. According to a report by WhatsApp watchdog, WABetaInfo, the Meta-owned chat app is testing a “Highlights” filter that users can opt for when muting a group. This could help users attend to messages that have them mentioned using “@” or just their name through bypass notifications. For unimportant messages, the group chat will remain muted, however. Since the new functionality is currently being tested, it is available to a handful of users with access to the beta programme. WhatsApp has not said when it will roll out the new group chat mute filter to the public.