WhatsApp group chats get 3 new features

Popular messaging app WhatsApp has introduced three new features in a recent update, aimed at making large group management easier and more organised. The new features include the ability to mention everyone at once, multiple improvements to the poll feature, and the option to easily create subgroups from large groups.

The most talked-about change is the new '@all' mention feature, which will allow users to notify all group members in a single message. Earlier, users had to use the '@' symbol to mention specific individuals, but now typing '@all' will send a notification to every member of the group. This feature will be particularly useful for quickly disseminating urgent information in family, workplace, educational or large organisational groups. To prevent misuse, WhatsApp has set conditions — only admins can use this feature in groups with more than 32 members. Even if a group is muted, '@all' notifications will still come through, but users can turn this off separately from the settings menu.

The second major change is in the poll feature, which now includes three new additions. Users can now set a specific time limit for voting when creating a poll, so voting will automatically close after the designated time. Poll creators can also choose to keep votes anonymous, which will help protect voter privacy when seeking opinions on personal or sensitive matters.

The third poll-related feature is the ability to edit a poll within the first 15 minutes of creation. If there is a spelling error or any linguistic mistake in the question, users can simply correct it without having to delete and create a new poll.

The third and final addition is the ability to quickly create subgroups from existing groups. If a separate discussion is needed with specific members without including the entire group, users can select desired individuals from the group member list and instantly create a new group. This reduces the hassle of searching and adding members individually and prevents the main group from being cluttered with irrelevant messages.

Technology experts believe these features will be particularly useful for office projects, school group work, family planning or event organisation. Overall, the move is seen as a step towards making the large group chat experience more comfortable and organised for users.