How many times have you saved a number on your contact list just to WhatsApp a person once or twice? The other route is the longer one where you need to create a wa.me URL in the web browser to initiate a conversation in the WhatsApp app.
WhatsApp has now made it easier to text unknown numbers without adding them to your contact list. The feature that works on both Android and iOS was first spotted by WABetaInfo and verified by Neowin.
To text an unknown number on WhatsApp, tap on the New Chat button in the Chats tab. It is present in the top-right corner on iOS and in the bottom-right corner on Android. Next, type the desired number in the search bar and wait for the app to look for it. On Android, you need to tap on the Lens icon in the top-right corner first, then enter the phone number.
If the phone number isn’t in your contacts but is available on WhatsApp, a Chat button will show up in front of it. Simply tap on that button to start a conversation with the unknown person. The Chat button will appear even if you sent messages to the unsaved number in the past.
It’s recommended that you should proceed with caution when sending and receiving messages from unknown numbers. If you don’t want to be interrupted by calls from people you don’t know, WhatsApp recently added a silence unknown callers toggle button to the app. The caller ID app Truecaller has also added support for WhatsApp to identify callers.
The Meta-owned instant messaging app has got a number of useful updates throughout the year. The list of WhatsApp features includes the ability to edit sent messages, post status reactions, save disappearing messages, support multiple smartphones, hide confidential chats, and more recently, contextual sticker suggestions.
WhatsApp also introduced a community-focused feature called Channels that allows admins to have one-way conversations with their followers via texts, videos, photos, stickers, etc.