WhatsApp's update: What’s new for iOS users?

The latest version of WhatsApp, 23.2.0.75, was just submitted through the TestFlight beta programme. So, what has been added in this update?

Reacting to messages within the announcement group is a new feature that is under development, according to a recent report from WABetaInfo. Reportedly, several users have discovered that they are unable to react to messages posted within the WhatsApp community announcement group.

Responding to messages in the community announcement group is not possible because doing so would make your phone number public. WhatsApp is working to make it so that your phone number is hidden when responding to messages in this particular group. 

WABetaInfo learned that WhatsApp is working on the same feature for a future update of the iOS app, thanks to the recently released WhatsApp beta for iOS 23.2.0.75.

This screenshot shows that WhatsApp is developing "an in-app banner to announce when an update that brings message reactions within the announcement group is available."

To respond to messages posted within the community announcement group in this situation, an update of WhatsApp from the App Store or the TestFlight app would be required.

In a subsequent version, the feature of responding to messages sent within the community announcement group will be made available. More details would be available regarding the update when this functionality is made available to some beta testers.

The TestFlight build is 23.2.0 (441749694), and WhatsApp's version is marked as 2.23.2.75 in the settings.