WhatsApp Messenger Rolling Out New Live Location Sharing Feature

WhatsApp is reportedly working on a couple of features which could be rolled out officially to all its users soon. Among the features is a live location sharing in group chats. More features include the option to edit and recall messages, which have been sent but not read by the recipient.

According to the new reports which we have, it looks like WhatsApp is working on a new feature altogether. With this new feature which is rumored to be called Live Location Tracking will allow you to track the location of your group members. This new feature has been found on the beta builds of both Android and iOS i.e. version 2.16.399 and version 2.17.3.28 respectively. This is something new since live location tracking feature is not something that we have seen in WhatsApp before as far as groups are concerned.

“Live Location” will simply use the GPS positioning of the smartphone to say where we are to our contacts in real time. But calm, because it will be optional and will only work in group chats.

2.17.3.28 iOS | 2.16.399+ Android: Live Location feature, that tracks the live location of other group participants (DISABLED BY DEFAULT). pic.twitter.com/pYEXT1nxyR

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo) January 26, 2017

According to the tech media Engadget, WhatsApp may well inform about our exact location over a period of time marked. We may limit this “Sneak Mode” to the minutes you want and remains disabled by default.

The feature is disabled by default and would need to be activated by going to the group Settings option on the top right and the option named ‘Show my friends’ will be visible which can be turned on and off according to one’s preference. In addition to this, WhatsApp users can also select the time duration of their live location. The options as seen in the images include 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes and indefinitely.

This tracking function is being tested by the company in the beta versions of the application, both Android and iOS. There is still no date set for the final version, but when it does, WhatsApp will allow you to sneak like this. So, what do you think about this feature? Share your views and thoughts in the comment section below.