2 is too quiet, 3 is a crowd, and 4 is enough. This is at least what WhatsApp had in mind.
The popular cross-platform messaging app WhatsApp has updated its service to support a much-requested feature: group video and voice calls. This allows users to chat with up to three more people simultaneously on its iOS and Android apps.
After the attempt was first discovered back in October 2017, group calling on the Facebook-owned messaging app was officially announced by Facebook at its annual F8 developer conference in May 2018. With WhatsApp serving more than 1.5 billion monthly users and more than 2 billion minutes on calls for users per day, it's obvious that group calling was a highly-anticipated feature.
Video calls have been supported by WhatsApp since 2016, but they were limited to only two participants.
To start a group call, users need to first start a video or voice call with one of their contacts.
Then they need to tap on a button located at the top-right corner of the screen to add more participant(s) to the call. And after the third user accepts the call, both of the their names will be shown with a comma separating them.
Users can add up to three participants for a total of four people in a video or voice call.
WhatsApp said that the feature is specifically designed to work under unstable and slow network conditions.
Additionally, calls are end-to-end encrypted, like all chats on the messaging app, using Open Whisper Systems. This is unique because even Telegram, the self-professed secure messaging app, hasn’t even gotten around to encrypting its group messaging chats, let alone group calls.
"Group calls are always end-to-end encrypted, and we've designed calling to work reliably around the world in different network conditions," said WhatsApp in a blog post.
This feature is one of the most requested. And with WhatsApp finally adding it, users should rejoice, despite being 2 years late.
However, WhatsApp group calling feature is pale if compared to some others. While it works well for setting up smaller group chats, it is not ideal for larger conference calls.
In comparison, Facebook Messenger supports group video calls of up to 50, and Google Hangouts video supports up to 25 people. Meanwhile, Skype supports 25, and Snapchat supports 16 participants. On the other hand, Apple's FaceTime works with up to 32 people using iOS 12.
For WhatsApp, 4 is probably enough. But for others, it's a party as more is better.
