WHATSAPP is massively increasing the number of people that can join a group chat.
So if you’re in a big group already, it could get even more chaotic.
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WhatsApp group sizes were originally capped at 100 people, before changing to a limit of 256 in 2016.
Then earlier this year, WhatsApp ramped this up to a frankly enormous 512 people.
Now WhatsApp is testing maximum group sizes of up to 1,024 participants.
The change was revealed by the tech sleuths at WABetaInfo, who found evidence of the trial in the WhatsApp beta app.
The feature is currently being tested on both iOS and Android in the beta – but not the live general release version of WhatsApp.
It’s unclear how many users can access it right now.
“If you want to check if the feature is available for your WhatsApp account, just try to create a group or to add new participants to an existing one,” WABetaInfo explained.
“In this section, you can see what’s the limit configured for your account.”
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That’s not the only new feature for group chats that WhatsApp is working on.
WhatsApp is also building something called Communities.
Communities are basically big groups that contain WhatsApp group chats within them.
Groups are one of the most popular ways to chat inside the Facebook-owned app.
But having multiple Groups can sometimes be chaotic – and hard to keep track of.
When it’s rolled out, it will let you message multiple groups at once.
For instance, you could have a Work Community that would have lots of smaller Groups inside.
Or maybe your local area would have a Community, which splits into separate Groups for schooling and complaining about neighbourhood issues.
“It is a private place where group admins have more control over some groups on WhatsApp, available in a future update of the app,” said WABetaInfo.
“It is like a group chat, and group admins are able to link other groups in the Community.”
WABetaInfo added: “It will be possible to reach everyone at once by sending messages to all participants of those groups linked to the community.”
Sadly Meta-owned WhatsApp hasn’t confirmed when this feature will roll out to the general public.
If you want to join the WhatsApp beta and try the latest features first, follow our guide below.
How to join 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.
Joining the WhatsApp beta on iPhone is more difficult, and has limited capacity.
Follow Apple’s guide here.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
