WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging applications out there, and a big part of its allure is the fact that it is available on different mobile platforms including Android, iOS or Windows Phone. Having more than 800 million active users. The application has received the Voice Calling feature a few months ago and since then we’ve noticed that a big wave of new people registered to use this awesome application.
It is good to know that the application has been bought by Facebook in February 2014 and since then we’ve noticed a lot of new changes, such as new features. In the new update for the Android app, messages can be marked as ‘unread’ by tapping and holding the conversation. They are given a green status, serving as a reminder for users to reply to someone another time.
The read message inside the chat remains unaffected, as does the order of the chat history, according to Android Police. The most widely used instant messaging service has been on an update releasing spree and has outed successive WhatsApp for Android updates bumping the version v2.12.189 to v2.12.194.
The new version also brings much-anticipated mark as unread feature that allows users to mark a chat as unread by just tapping and holding any conversation. Notably, the mark as unread feature doesn't switch the status for sender and only makes changes at the receiver's end. The feature can be useful in case where a user wants to come back to a chat at a later time.
WhatsApp for Android update also adds low data usage option for voice calls, which can be useful at locations where there is limited connectivity. Another change spotted hints that WhatsApp is once again bringing the Google Drive backup and restore option back, which was introduced back in April but removed shortly after.
The spree also brought a handy new feature that lets users customize notifications for individual contacts. Just open a person's details page and you'll see a new Notifications box below Media. Pick a specific tone, set the vibration length, and choose to allow pop-up notifications for messages from that friend. You can also opt to mute the chat for eight hours, one week, or one year.
Installing WhatsApp 2.12.194 on your Android device
First of all, you will need to uninstall the current WhatsApp application that you have installed on your Android device. After that, you will need to head to whatsapp.com/android and download the installation (APK) file from there.
Once you’ve got the APK file on your Android device, enable the Unknown Sources option by going to your device’s Settings->Applications or Settings->Security. Finally, open a file manager application, head to the location where you’ve saved the WhatsApp 2.12.194 APK file and install it on your device.
Finally, there's also a new low data usage option for voice calls, which could be helpful if you're running a slow or limited data plan. This feature is available in the app's settings.