WhatsApp adds new feature to hide names while voting in polls

Mountain View: WhatsApp has introduced new features aimed at making group chats more useful and easier to manage, while also enhancing user privacy.

The popular instant messaging platform has rolled out three new features designed to improve the polling experience in group chats.

With the latest update, users can hide their names when voting in polls, allowing them to participate without revealing how they voted. Users can also set a time limit for polls and edit a poll within 15 minutes of creating it.

WhatsApp is also introducing an @all mention feature, which allows users to notify everyone in a group at once. In larger groups with more than 32 members, however, only group admins can use the feature.

Another addition is the “Create a similar group” option, available from the group details screen. The feature allows users to create a smaller group using selected members from an existing group, making it easier to organise separate conversations.

These new features are currently rolling out to WhatsApp users.

WhatsApp tests new update with animated chat wallpapers

Meanwhile, WhatsApp is testing three new chat theme categories for Android.

The “Featured” category includes animated wallpapers with slow, subtle motion designed to add visual effects without distracting users from their conversations.

The “Doodle” category brings back WhatsApp’s classic pattern-based backgrounds, while “Minimal” offers plain white or dark backgrounds based on the device’s system settings.

All three theme categories automatically adjust chat bubble colours to match the selected background.

The new theme options are still under development and are not yet available to beta testers.