The voice notes feature is only available to TestFlight users so far

WhatsApp has started to roll out a global voice notes feature to iPhone users in the beta program which would allow the voice note to continue playing even after the user exits the chat. Currently, the voice note stops if the user switches to a different chat or replies to a pop-up notification.

TestFlight — Apple’s App Store beta program — offers users the chance to test out features before they are released to the public at large. One has to request an invitation from the app’s specific beta program to join; however, the WhatsApp Messanger beta program has been closed for nearly a year. The WhatsApp business app still accepts beta testers, but currently does not have slots available.

WABetaInfo provided screenshots of the feature in use. The site further informed that the beta is released to select users, and one might have to wait for an update until they can use the feature. While an Android version of the feature is also underway, there has been no release date mentioned so far.

It had previously been reported that the Meta-owned company would introduce a ‘third blue tick’ feature to indicate when a screenshot was taken, similar to Instagram Messenger and Snapchat, but this turned out to be false.

“WhatsApp is NOT developing a third blue check to detect screenshots: it’s fake news,” WABetaInfo said on Twitter earlier.

In December, the company announced more time frames would be added to its disappearing messages feature.

“With Disappearing Messages, you choose how long your messages stay around. Set to default on all new chats, choose the duration, and get more control of your conversations. Not every message needs to stick around forever. Rolling out over the next few weeks,” the chat service wrote on their official Twitter handle.

“For people who choose to switch on default disappearing messages, we will display a message in your chats that tells people this is the default you’ve chosen. This makes clear it’s nothing personal – it’s a choice you’ve made about how you want to communicate with everyone on WhatsApp moving forward. Though of course, if you need a particular conversation to remain permanent, it’s easy to switch a chat back,” WhatsApp added.

Moreover, WhatsApp is rolling out a new privacy measure that hides your “last seen” status from people you don’t know or haven’t chatted with in the app. The feature will not affect chats from people who you have added to your contacts.

WhatsApp is the most popular messaging service in 100 countries and currently has 2.5 billion users worldwide.