Over the past couple of weeks, WhatsApp has begun the slow rollout of features likeChannels for the global audiencewhile alsopicking up a Wear OS appat long last. There was some bad news, too, with WhatsAppsuffering a global outage momentarilylast week. Despite this setback, WhatsApp has continued to add new elements to the beta version of the app, allowing select individuals to test under-development features before everyone else. Well, the newest addition to the beta version of thecommunications appis a Material You-based search bar.
While a search bar already exists across various WhatsApp menus, such as Chats, Status, Settings, etc, this new redesign replaces the boxy version currently available with a rounded search box, in line with Material Design 3. Some of Google’s own apps have receivedMaterial You UI elementsover the past several months, but it’s encouraging to see a third-party app like WhatsApp following suit, albeit a little late.
Current WhatsApp search bar (left); The updated search bar on the latest WhatsApp beta (right)
The new Material You search box was spotted within WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.23.16.5, which is rolling out now via the Google Play Store, perWABetaInfo. Although the update is already available for individuals enrolled in the beta channel, this new redesign may not be visible to everyone just yet, the publication notes.
Separately, WABetaInfo’s Twitter account sheds light on another minor redesign involving a color change for the three icons on the top right of the screen, including Camera, Search, and the three-dot Settings icon.
These icons now use a whiter shade in place of the standard gray hue. WABetaInfo’s Twitter page says this minor visual tweak made its way to the app with WhatsApp beta version 2.23.16.4, with the site adding that some users who have seen the new Material You search bar may also see these updated icons.
The revised icon colors and the Material You-based search box should eventually make it to the stable channel for all users. But as is usually the case with beta updates, we don’t have an official ETA for its rollout to the masses just yet. These newly discovered visual updates follow a long list of changes made by WhatsApp in recent weeks, includingnew group chat iconsfor accounts without profile pictures, with the Meta-owned chat app also believed to be working on its own version ofApple’s Memoji.
