WhatsApp FINALLY ‘rolling out’ Dark Mode – how to make sure you get it first
AFTER months of rumours, it appears WhatsApp is finally getting dark mode. The long-awaited setting inverts the colours on your screen to create a darker theme that makes for comfier messaging in the dark. Developers hope the new theme, which you can switch on or off as you prefer, will reduce the strain on your […]
AFTER months of rumours, it appears WhatsApp is finally getting dark mode.
The long-awaited setting inverts the colours on your screen to create a darker theme that makes for comfier messaging in the dark.
Developers hope the new theme, which you can switch on or off as you prefer, will reduce the strain on your eyes during late-night text marathons.
WhatsApp appears to finally be rolling out the feature to select Android users, according to trusted leaker WABetaInfo.
The site has an impressive track record for WhatsApp leaks, regularly digging into the app’s code to uncover new features.
Dark mode rolls out to Beta testers – members of a free programme that gives you access to new WhatsApp features first – starting Wednesday, WABetaInfo said.
It will likely then take at least one more week for the feature to roll out to all Android users. No word yet on an iOS version, unfortunately.
Once it’s on your phone, you’ll be able to access dark mode via WhatsApp Settings > Chats > Theme.
You’ll have three options to choose from: Light, dark and “set by battery saver”.
The light theme is the default WhatsApp colour scheme we’ve come to know and love.
The dark theme flips the colour scheme, giving you a black background with white text.
Setting the theme to “by battery saver” means your WhatsApp will keep hold of its default colour scheme until your phone is low on juice.
At this point, it will flip to dark mode. Dark mode preserves the battery of your phone because it lights up fewer pixels when you’re using it.
Speculation over a WhatsApp dark mode has brewed for months following the introduction of similar tools on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook Messenger.
The feature has previously been spotted in several beta versions of the iOS and Android versions of WhatsApp.
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.
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
How to get WhatsApp beta
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, WhatsApp beta can be downloaded on a computer via the Google Play site.
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Are you excited for WhatsApp’s dark mode? Let us know in the comments!
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