WhatsApp Beta: UWP app for Windows 11 gets new features

Meta’s move from WhatsApp Electron to a UWP app for Windows 11 is gaining momentum. After an update with fresh design elements, there is now a new chat list filtering feature. Searching for groups or unread messages is thus simplified.

Meta (formerly Facebook) seems to be slowly but surely approaching the release of WhatsApp Desktop as a Universal Windows Platform app (UWP), which, unlike the current web-based variant, inherits the WinUI design known from Windows 11 and among others. other things, it functionally supports multiple devices independent of the smartphone. The recent WhatsApp beta update also revealed a new filter available from version 2.2216.4.0.

Cleaned chat lists at the touch of a button

The new feature allows filtering the global chat list by unread messages or groups. Users can also hide chats from people who are not part of their own contact list. The new filter is especially noticeable in larger chat lists. For example, the range of functions of the UWP app is expanded and it can be assumed that Meta will dare to publish a final version in the near future. Until then, the WhatsApp Beta can be obtained and used by anyone through the Microsoft Store.

In parallel with the new chat filters, the developers are working loud WABetaInfo Among other things, is the visibility of status updates within the message lists and the corresponding quick responses. The recently emerged survey feature is also being tested within the WhatsApp beta, to make various decisions easier, especially for groups, without having to rely on external programs. So Meta has almost all the features in its UWP app that users also know from the versions for Apple iOS and Google Android.