WhatsApp is Bringing Wallpaper Dimming and Doodles to Chat Backgrounds in New Update

WhatsApp has a new beta update out for Android, and the new update showcases changes to the way the background wallpapers of your chat interface may look in a stable update in the future. According to the update, the two key changes being rolled out to how the chat wallpapers look include the option to tweak the chat wallpaper opacity, and also add or remove WhatsApp’s signature chat wallpaper doodles on the background. The features, as revealed by WABetaInfo, are presently under beta testing, and given the typical timeline in which WhatsApp works, should become available to all WhatsApp users some time in the future.

The ‘Wallpaper Dimming’ feature on WhatsApp is shown to appear at the bottom of WhatsApp’s chat wallpaper editing screen. Using a slider interface, users will be able to select the intensity or opacity of the background wallpaper – from being more prominent to more subtle. While this is a seemingly minor change, the tweak can help WhatsApp users get a more refined and personalised usage experience, and these minor refinements is what WhatsApp has extensively worked on in the recent past.

In the previous beta update with version number 2.20.200.3 on WhatsApp for Android, WABetaInfo also noted that WhatsApp is giving users the ability to add or remove its signature doodles from a solid colour background. At present, WhatsApp’s doodle wallpaper is only available in a single shade, for both the light and dark modes. With the solid colour layout, WhatsApp will allow you to add its doodles to any colour you like, and while the next beta update did not show this, it is likely that WhatsApp may allow you to control both the addition of doodles and the opacity of a chat wallpaper, once the two features are rolled out together in a future stable update.

As always, WhatsApp is working on adding multiple new features to the app to make it more wholesome. Some of the other updates being worked on include a new WhatsApp call button, which bundles both voice and video calling into a single interface. This would work similar to Apple’s iMessages, where users can choose whether to make a voice call or a video call from a single interface. Also coming up is a ‘catalogue’ shortcut for WhatsApp business accounts, to make it easier for showing a catalogue of available services to potential customers.