WhatsApp is finally getting a huge new feature that’s been on Facebook for years

WHATSAPP is taking a leaf out of Facebook’s book by developing a new feature that will save users time when texting mates.

Given that they’re both owned by Mark Zuckerberg‘s Meta tech empire, it’s no surprise WhatsApp is copying this longstanding option.

WABetaInfoReactions look set to arrive soon[/caption]

Early leaked screenshots recently showed that WhatsApp could soon be getting quick reactions.

But now we’ve found out they could be coming to WhatsApp on desktop too, which increases the chances of it becoming a reality across the board.

Anyone who uses Facebook Messenger will have been familiar with reactions for quite some time.

They allow you to send quick emoji-type responses, ranging from a heart, a laughing face, a shocked face, a sad face, an angry face and the iconic thumbs up.

Well, as revealed earlier this month, it looks set to transcend onto WhatsApp next.

There is one slight change though – it looks like the team at WhatsApp have swapped the angry face in favour of the prayer hands emoji.

But what’s even more interesting is that testing is not only already underway on the iOS and Android app, but also the desktop app.

‘Today, we are finally able to share a screenshot with you, so you can discover how the feature works on WhatsApp Desktop beta when it will be released in a future update,” said WABetaInfo, who leaked the screenshot.

Similar to Messenger, it looks like you need to hover over a message to be able to send a reaction.

A subtle smiley face then appears, which you can click to select your quick reaction.

As ever with these things, it’s still in the testing stage, so WhatsApp could very well decide not to go ahead with it at all.

But if it’s being tested on iOS, Android and now desktop, it looks like developers are taking a serious look at it, so hopefully it’ll appear in an update soon.

AlamyWhatsApp is owned by Facebook parent Meta[/caption]

In other news, people are increasingly unable to tell apart fake faces made by AI and real ones, new research suggests.

Websites could crash in a couple of months if owners fail to make major change ahead of Chrome, Edge and Firefox ‘version 100’ update.

Uber has revealed the worst and best cities for passenger ratings.

And the naughtiest ever emoji combinations to be careful of have been revealed.

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