WhatsApp makes it easier to send messages to yourself

WhatsApp rolls out a new feature that makes it easier to send yourself messages, whether those are reminders or shopping lists. The aptly named Message Yourself feature makes your account visible at the top of the contact list when creating new messages. If you click on that, you can send yourself messages, reminders, shopping lists, and anything you need to remember. From what we understand, you can set notifications for it. And you can pin your Message Yourself chats to the top of the conversation list for easier access. The Meta-owned messaging app has started to roll this feature out globally to Android and iOS users. 

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Google Assistant can now read and reply to your messages on third-party apps

Google has always been able to read text messages sent through the native Messages app or Hangouts. But it wasn’t able to read messages from other messaging services wasn’t an option. Until now, that is. According to Android Police, Assistant will now read messages from apps like Slack, WhatsApp, Telegram, GroupMe, Discord, and the like, as well as reply to these messages. To try this out, say “Read my messages” to Assistant. You will need to allow the Google app to access your notifications for this to work.

Once that’s done, a card will pop up with the last text message or messages you’ve received and then it’ll read these out loud. Assistant will say which app it’s from and the name of the sender. You will then be asked if you want to type or dictate a reply. When Assistant has sent your reply, the original message will be marked as read and the notification will go away. However, it won’t read messages containing things like audio notes, pictures, or videos. Assistant will just say things like: “the message just contains an audio attachment.” And then it won’t play this back. You can try this out the next time you get notifications to see if the feature made its way to you.

Source: Android Police

WhatsApp adds two-step authentication to beta app

Whenever an online service adds two-factor authentication, we encourage you to enable it. WhatsApp gets a version of that in its beta app (at least starting version 2.16.341). It isn’t the two-factor authentication you know but it at least offers a form of security. Since WhatsApp uses your phone number to log into your account. Someone can gain access to it if they take your phone. What two-step authentication does is let you create a six-digit PIN you need to enter every time you log into your account alongside your phone number.

Source: Lifehacker

New Apple TV ad tugs at heartstrings to promote new iOS messaging features

Apple has long since mastered the art of creating an emotionally powerful ad. Its latest ad isn’t an exception. Promoting the new messaging features in iOS 10, the new video shows a solitary bright red balloon flying from a farmhouse window, over mountains and seas, to fly into the window in the city (where it’s already joined by many balloons) to a girl celebrating her birthday.

What Apple is trying to convey with the ad is there are a lot of new ways to send messages that carry more emotions in them. These include being able to change sizes of the text and make them animated, have color backgrounds, and even swap in emojis for words.

Source: Fast Company