WhatsApp is getting an extension that allows users to show and share their screen with other WhatsApp contacts. But how exactly does the new screen sharing feature work?
WhatsApp offers screen sharing during video calls.
Photo: PantherMedia/dolphfynlow
In today’s digital age, where communication is often done through mobile devices such as smartphones, older generations in particular can sometimes face technical challenges. For example, if the grandparents are having a problem with their mobile phones and for various reasons we are not able to come and help them personally right away, the latest feature of WhatsApp can offer a very useful solution.
Share screen content in real time
WhatsApp recently revealed a game-changing addition – screen sharing. This feature allows users to not only chat with each other, but also share screen content in real time. This opens up an innovative possibility for cases that require technical support: if our grandparents told us that they were struggling with some settings on their mobile phones, we could ask them to share their screen.
Screen sharing now extends the functionality of video calls within this messenger. With the help of this add-on, it is possible to present to other participants what is currently displayed on their smartphone screen.
This functionality is already known from video conferencing platforms such as Skype, Teams or Zoom. Screen sharing proves to be very useful as this feature allows seamless collaboration and sharing of information instantly.
In May, the screen sharing feature became available for the first time in a beta version of the messenger. In early August, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced this feature in a personal post. “We are adding the ability to share your screen during a video call in WhatsApp,” he wrote.
Since this announcement, the feature is now gradually being rolled out to all users in the official release.
How to share screen with WhatsApp?
To take advantage of this functionality, it is first necessary to use the latest version of WhatsApp. After that, the user can start a video call as usual. A new button will then appear within the video window. After clicking this button, a query appears asking if the content of the current screen should be visible to the conversation partner. It should be noted that all content, including passwords, images and sensitive data that may be visible, will appear on the screen of the other participant. However, one must know that no recordings or storage are made.
After confirming the release, the recipient of the video call no longer sees the sender’s camera view, but instead sees the content displayed on the smartphone screen. This makes it possible to decide for yourself whether to move the entire screen content or only the content of a specific application. In this way, for example, settings or images can be displayed directly.
Screen sharing can be stopped at any time without leaving the video call. The feature provides a flexible way to share content and return to the normal video call view when needed.
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