WhatsApp has made it much easier for you to operate the app with one hand on your Android phone.
WhatsApp is now rolling out a significant upgrade to the app’s user interface for Android handsets. The Meta-owned messaging service has announced that it has relocated the four navigation tabs from the top of the screen to the bottom. The redesigned visual interface has been enabled on the beta version of the app for several months and is now available to all users. The new design will also make it easier for users to flip between tabs while holding the phone in one hand.
WhatsApp announced the release of the new bottom navigation bar for Android via a post on X (previously Twitter). The service shared screenshots of the former UI, which included four tabs — communities, conversations, status, and calls — above the chat list. With the most recent update, users will notice that the tabs and icons have been relocated to the bottom, and the arrangement may have been modified.
https://twitter.com/WhatsApp/status/1773427349532430714/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1773427349532430714%7Ctwgr%5Ecff7d6f95f96a512120f164692295d146f31a2f0%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gadgets360.com%2Fapps%2Fnews%2Fwhatsapp-bottom-navigation-tabs-android-rollout-5340856
This is one of the most significant updates to the WhatsApp for Android layout in a long time, and it brings the app’s primary navigation tabs within reach of your thumb, which is especially useful if you only have one hand free. However, if you want to search for something, you’ll still have to go to the top of the screen. WhatsApp for iOS likewise displays tabs at the bottom of the screen, with a fifth one for the settings menu.
While the bottom navigation tabs may finally be available to users following months of testing on the beta channel, WhatsApp is working on more improvements that may be added to the app in the future. The messaging service is apparently working on the ability to make foreign payments through the app utilizing the NPCI’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in India.
The messaging service is also planning to introduce new AI-powered capabilities to its app. WhatsApp is working on a feature that would allow users to submit text instructions to make stickers using artificial intelligence (AI) in the app. Similarly, WhatsApp was recently seen implementing AI-powered picture editing tools as well as a feature that allows users to ask Meta AI queries using the WhatsApp search box. These functionalities have yet to be rolled out to WhatsApp users in both stable and beta versions.