New WhatsApp ‘dark mode’ will switch on automatically to boost your phone’s battery life
WHATSAPPS' long-awaited "dark mode" will help your phone's battery last longer, according to reports.
The tool expected to launch in the coming months inverts the colours of your screen to create a darker theme for messaging in the dark.
Developers hope the change, which you'll have the option to switch on or off, will reduce the strain on your eyes after lots of screen time.
And if the latest rumours are to be believed, dark mode will also help you squeeze every minute out of your battery life.
You'll have the option to link it up to your phone's Battery Saver mode, reports .
The site has an impressive track record for WhatsApp leaks, regularly digging into the app's code to uncover new features.
If the newly found setting is enabled, dark mode will automatically switch on whenever Battery Saver is activated.
On most phones, Battery Saver fires up when your power is below a certain percentage, or if you turn it on manually.
This will help preserve your battery, as it means fewer of your screen's pixels are turned on when using the app.
"WhatsApp doesn’t stop amazing us, continuing to improve with new features like the Battery Saver option" WABetaInfo wrote.
In Dark Mode, WhatsApp has a black background with white text on top.
The regular display version is the opposite of this with the white background creating a lot of light.
The highly anticipated feature is expected to improve user experience and reduce battery consumption.
The feature has previously been spotted in several beta versions of the iOS and Android apps.
It's important to note that the newly found Battery Saver option will only work if your phone has an OLED screen.
The tech has featured on most top-end gadgets from Samsung, Apple and more over the past couple years.
Traditional LCD screens illuminate the display by a large LED backlight.
With OLED screens, the pixels can be turned on or off individually, with no need for a backlight.
That means when something is black on screen, it's possible to display that by simply turning pixels off.
WhatsApp – a quick history
Here's what you need to know...
- WhatsApp was created in 2009 by computer programmers Brian Acton and Jan Koum - former employees of Yahoo
- It's one of the most popular messaging services in the world
- Koum came up with the name WhatsApp because it sounded like "what's up"
- After a number of tweaks the app was released with a messaging component in June 2009, with 250,000 active users
- It was originally free but switched to a paid service to avoid growing too fast. Then in 2016, it became free again for all users
- Facebook bought WhatsApp Inc in February 2014 for $19.3billion (£14.64bn)
- The app is particularly popular because all messages are encrypted during transit, shutting out snoopers
- As of January 2018, WhatsApp has over 1.5billion users globally
As with any alleged new feature, we can't be sure WhatsApp will ever roll it out, so take the rumours with a pinch of salt.
It's possible WhatsApp is just trying the Battery saver link and may bin it before dark mode actually launches.
Based on previous beta launches, out guess is that dark mode will be rolled out to users across the globe some time in the next few months.
Other social media sites have their own versions of dark mode, including Twitter, Instagram and Facebook Messenger.
Exactly when WhatsApp's will release, though, remains a mystery. The firm has yet to announce it's even developing the feature.
WhatsApp did not respond to a request for comment.
How to get WhatsApp beta
If you're eager to try out dark mode for yourself, you could always try getting it early via WhatsApp's beta programme.
To download WhatsApp beta for your smartphone you need to go to Google Play on your Android and search for WhatsApp.
Scroll down the page until you see "Become a Beta Tester".
Tap the "I'm In" button and then click "Join" to confirm.
Now all you have to do is wait for the update to the beta version of the app.
Downloading WhatsApp beta on iOS is a much trickier and riskier process so this is not recommended.
However, the WhatsApp beta can also be downloaded on a computer via the Google Play site.
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