After introducing limited in-app browser support for certain business links last year, WhatsApp is now working on expanding the feature to all links shared in chats. Here are the details.
WhatsApp working on optional in-app browser
Last May, WABetaInfo reported that WhatsApp had begun testing a feature that would allow “users to view certain HTTPS-secured business sites within the app,” with the option to open those links in their default browser via the three-dot menu.
Now, the site reports that WhatsApp is working on extending this support to all in-chat links.
Although the feature is not yet available to beta testers, WABetaInfo has uncovered references to it in the latest TestFlight build and shared screenshots showing how it will work.
According to the site, a new “In-app browser” option under Settings > Chats will let users choose whether links open directly within WhatsApp or in their default browser.
Image: WABetaInfo
The same settings screen will also let users clear cookies, cache, and other browsing data stored by WhatsApp’s in-app browser.
Here’s WABetaInfo:
Users will be able to enable the in-app browser from the app settings. Here, WhatsApp will add a new option called “In-app browser”. When users enable this feature, they will be able to open any link they send and receive in the chat screen. When users enable this option for the first time, WhatsApp will show a bottom sheet that explains how the feature works. It informs users that they can now open any link within WhatsApp rather than in the default browser. Users will be able to restore the default browser at any time.
The report notes that “WhatsApp cannot see links shared in the conversation and which ones users open.”
As is usually the case with references discovered in WhatsApp’s TestFlight builds, there is currently no word on when the app plans to make the feature available to beta testers or the general public.
To read WABetaInfo’s full report, follow this link.
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