WhatsApp inches closer to launching Reaction Notifications on Android

WhatsApp has started developing Reaction Notifications for its Android app. The company is also developing a similar feature for its iOS-based app.

WhatsApp users will be able to manage Reaction Notifications for individual chat threads and group chats separately. (Bloomberg)

WhatsApp, for long, has been said to be working on a feature called Message Reactions that will enable users of the Meta-owned messaging app to send reactions to the messages in a chat. This feature is similar to the one available on Instagram and on Facebook Messenger wherein users can either send a reply to a message or they can respond to a message with certain emojis that appear. These reactions appear in a small pill-shaped bubble just under the message for which the reaction was shared. In addition to this, the messaging app is also said to be working on a feature called Reaction Notifications that will work in tandem with Message Reactions and enable users to pick if they want to be notified when a friend responds to their message with a Message Reaction. While a lot has been said about Message Reactions, details about Reaction Notifications remain scarce. Now, a new report shares more details in this regard.

WABetaInfo had earlier reported that WhatsApp has started developing Reaction Notifications feature for its iOS app. Now, the blog site reports that WhatsApp has started developing the Reaction Notifications feature for its Android app. The blog site also reported that this feature will arrive in WhatsApp's Android beta app with a later update, which is when Android beta users will be able to test it before it is rolled to a wider user base.

A screenshot shared by the blog site shows that the Reaction Notifications will appear in the Notification Settings of WhatsApp's Settings. It will appear in the form of a toggle button that will let users to either see or hide notifications for Message Reactions that they receive. Furthermore, the screenshot shows that WhatsApp users will be able to manage Reaction Notifications for individual chat threads and group chats separately.

As far as the availability is concerned, the blog site says that there is no timeline available as to when this feature will be available in WhatsApp's Android app just yet. We are expected to know more about this with a future update.