WhatsApp Turns Into Walkie-Talkie With New Voice Chats: How to Use

WhatsApp can now become your walkie-talkie, which you can use to send short voice messages to your family, friends, and even colleagues. The Meta-owned chat app has rolled out a new Voice Chat feature that lets you record short and instant voice messages and drop them in real-time as part of a group chat without having to make it look like an official voice call. Voice Chat lets you start a voice-based conversation with members of a group of any size without ringing them.

What is WhatsApp Voice Chat?

Anyone can start a voice chat by swiping from the bottom of a chat and holding for a few seconds — just like you would hold a button to speak on a walkie-talkie — and release when you are done recording your message. “Starting a voice chat doesn’t notify or ring anyone, so that people can join and leave the hangout whenever,” said WhatsApp. The voice chats are pinned to the chat, so people who could not join the conversation can attend them later. These members can also start a voice chat anytime by following up on chats. Since the voice chats are exchanged in real time, it is easy for group members to hold a conversation about any topic without breaks.

How is WhatsApp Voice Chat different from voice calls & voice notes?

Voice Chat is different from both WhatsApp Group calls and voice notes. When you initiate a group call, all its members are notified and must accept to join the conversation. Otherwise, WhatsApp keeps ringing unless you reject the call. It is similar to conventional phone calls. Meanwhile, voice notes are recorded messages you send to chats without invoking the sense of a real-time conversation. Voice Chat is, say, an amalgamation of both features where you can remain connected on the line for voice chats with other group members without immediacy. When you start a voice chat, nobody in the group is informed — you have to nudge people to join the voice chat. Think of it as a hyper-casual way to talk to group members using your voice.

How to use WhatsApp Voice Chat

Open a group and move your thumb or finger to the bottom of the chat, where the message box is. Now, swipe up. Doing that will tell you to keep holding to start a voice chat. When you keep holding for a few seconds, the voice chat is triggered, putting you on a voice line in the group. But this will not automatically notify other group members. WhatsApp will show an option to nudge by sending a wave. Participants can join the voice chat if they want, enter or exit it as they please. WhatsApp says voice chats are end-to-end encrypted just like text messages and voice calls.

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