WhatsApp is now enabling users to delete messages even if it has already been sent. However, users will have seven minutes to make up their mind whether or not to delete the message, beyond which it becomes permanent.
The process though is simple as the user will just have to tap on the message they wish to delete. A ‘Delete’ option will pop up. Tap on it, and the message will be gone for good. There is going to be a message displayed though – ‘This message was deleted’, which will let other users know there was a correction made.
However, there are a few pre-requisites for the feature to work. Those include the need to have the latest version of WhatsApp installed to avail of the above benefit. So for those who haven’t updated their apps, they are going to miss out on the chance to delete any of their sent messages.
In fact, since the feature is applicable to only the latest version of WhatsApp, both the sender and receiver will need to update their apps for the feature to work. The implications of this become more pronounced in chat groups as every member of the group will need to keep their apps updated for the feature actually to work. Even if one member is yet to update, the feature won’t work for everyone else. If that is not all, there won’t be any confirmation either if the deletion request of a member has actually been complied with.
Another perceived shortcoming with the feature is that even if a user is able to delete a sent message, the same might have already been picked up by the receiver by way of notifications. So there is no surety the message that has been deleted is indeed gone for good.
Further, latest update that lets users to tinker with their sent messages isn’t available to all just yet. Rather, WhatsApp is quite slow in rolling out the update even though it was being tested for the most of this year. The feature is already available with the parent company Facebook’s other popular chat application, Messenger.
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Lastly, this isn’t the sort of thing that can be considered a must-have feature for anyone to use WhatsApp. The app has already gone for a billion plus audience sans it though those who have a history of making typos will surely benefit from it.
