WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the business and has managed to keep up with the competition by adding functionality likeCommunities. However, this consolidated group messaging feature was exempt from recently added features likegroup and 1-1 message editing. The app developer is now rolling out a new beta on Android that finally allows admins to edit messages posted on their WhatsApp community.
Message editing is not a particularly big feature and one that has been a staple of rival IM app Telegram for a few years now. But WhatsApp only picked it up in May, and it’s somewhat strange that the developers have taken this long to test it for Communities as well.
WABetaInforeportsthat the feature was spotted within WhatsApp beta for Androidv2.23.18.16, rolling out through the Play Store and also available viaAPKMirror. Message editing within Communities is limited to administrators and creators of the community and serves as an essential safeguard against accidentally sharing the wrong information with a large number of people.
Accessing the feature requires admins to long-press a message and tap on the three-dot icon on the top right of the page, as shown above, which then opens a menu displaying theEditbutton. I was unable to find this three-dot icon and the corresponding menu on my test device, however, indicating that the rollout pace could be slow. Edited messages will be marked as such within the text’s body, while the 15-minute time limit is also in place here.
Firstannouncedin April 2022 before widely rolling out inNovember, Communities makes it easier to stay in touch with all your groups, with admins/creators having full control over what each group sees. Admittedly confusing at first glance, at its core, Communities is designed to make your WhatsApp groups easier to find by putting them in one convenient location.
