WhatsApp updated the video calling experience across devices on Thursday by introducing screen sharing with audio support and a new speaker spotlight feature. It’s also increasing the limit for video call participants to up to 32 people, TechCrunch reported.
In August last year, WhatsApp introduced screen sharing for video calls. The instant messaging app has now enhanced that experience by enabling support to share audio alongside your screen. This will let you watch videos with your contacts on a WhatsApp call.
The other significant update that WhatsApp has made to its video calling is the expanded limit, which allows users to have up to 32 people on a single video call across devices. Before this update, WhatsApp had a 32-participant limit on mobile devices, while users on Windows and macOS could add up to 16 and 8 participants, respectively.
WhatsApp posted the following on its blog:
Since we brought Calling to WhatsApp back in 2015, we’ve continued to improve it with the introduction of group calls, video calls, and multi-platform support.
Today, we have several updates that will make calls across your devices even bigger and better, rolling out over the next few weeks:
Screen sharing with audio: Ideal for watching videos together, now when you share your screen, you can share your audio too.
More participants: Now you can have up to 32 people on a video call across all your devices.
Speaker spotlight: Easily see who’s talking with the speaker automatically highlighted and appearing first on the screen.
We also remain relentlessly focused on audio and video quality, for clearer calls no matter where you are. We recently launched Low codec which improves call reliability. Calls made on mobile devices benefit from improved noise and echo cancellation, making it easier to have calls in noisy environments, and video calls have higher resolution for those with faster connections.
Engadget reported WhatsApp is upgrading its video-calling chops. The Meta-owned platform is enhancing its calls with a new screen-sharing feature, a higher participant count and a speaker spotlight to try and make the platform a more viable competitor to Zoom, FaceTime, and Google Meet.
Screen sharing could be handy for watching videos together, sharing content that isn’t easily sharable or troubleshooting your parents’ devices. It also allows for audio sharing, so you can easily chat with others while looking at their screen.
WhatsApp also expanded its participant count to 32 people on video calls. The new cap applies to all platforms. It’s a significant boost from the previous limit of eight people, first rolled out in 2020 as pandemic lockdowns kicked into full gear.
In my opinion, the WhatsApp update that can include 32 people might be good for those who want to speak with family members or close friends. That said, having 32 people to talk with at the same time might be chaotic for some.