On the heels of Apple announcing its new software iOS 16 will let you edit or unsend messages, WhatsApp has shared that it’s upped the timing on its own unsend message feature. You used to be able to unsend messages on WhatsApp within an hour, but now you’ll have a little more time to question your words — with the limit upped to two days.
💭 Rethinking your message? Now you’ll have a little over 2 days to delete your messages from your chats after you hit send.
— WhatsApp (@WhatsApp) August 8, 2022
To use the feature, open up the WhatsApp chat where you want to delete the message. Tap and hold the content you’d like gone, and then either hit ‘Delete for everyone’ or ‘Delete for me’. If you’ve passed the time limit, meaning it’s been longer than two days, you’ll only see the option to ‘Delete for me’.
There is one catch to be aware of, though: all recipients must have the most recent version of WhatsApp for it to work. If they haven’t updated their app, you can hit ‘Delete for everyone’ all you want, but it won’t actually delete it from their app. Even worse, you won’t ever know.
Related: Apple Announces Mobile Software Update iOS 16 With “One of the Most Requested Features”
Related: Is Apple’s HomePod Making a Comeback? These Clues Say Yes
Interestingly, while Apple had previously said its yet-to-be-released iOS would give you 15 minutes to unsend a message, its latest betas (testing versions of the app) have seen this limit reduced to only two minutes. No word yet on what the decided time limit will be on the final version.
The new iOS 16, which is expected to be released in the coming weeks, will also let you edit messages, as well as mark read messages as unread.
Other new features include more customisable lock screens, live texting working on video, the Mail app allowing for email scheduling and a new iCloud Shared Photo Library that lets up to six users easily share photos. Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, Craig Federighi said its updates “will change the way you experience iPhone”.
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