Those who use WhatsApp on iPhones have been able to turn voice messages into text for almost a year, which is a handy feature.
Now, it looks like it’s finally the turn of Android users! WhatsApp is working on adding this same time-saving feature to the Android app. Some clues in the latest test version (version 2.24.7.7) suggest this feature is on the way. Here’s what we know so far:
Your phone’s built-in speech recognition software will be used to turn voice messages into text. There will likely be a download of around 150MB required to enable this feature.
Just like your messages themselves, the written versions of voice messages will also be encrypted to keep things private. The option to turn on transcription might be found in the Settings menu, under the Chats section.
We don’t know exactly when this feature will be available for everyone using WhatsApp on Android, but it could be coming in a future update.
Once it’s here, WhatsApp will be catching up to other messaging apps like Telegram and Google Messages, which already offer transcription on Android.
It will be interesting to see how well this feature works and if there are any limitations, but overall, it’s exciting news for Android users who want to skip listening to voice messages and just read the text instead!