WhatsApp users now have the option to send photos to their friends in HD quality
These photos will be protected by WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption.

By Shivali Best for Mailonline

Contents

How to send HD photos on WhatsApp THE BEST WHATSAPP ALTERNATIVES Share or comment on this article: WhatsApp rolls out a HUGE update that transforms the way you send photos to your friends – here’s what you need to know

Published: 07:26 EDT, August 21, 2023 | Updated: 07:26 EDT, August 21, 2023

It is the reference messaging platform for millions of people around the world.

But WhatsApp users will know the frustration of sending photos to their friends on the platform, only to find they’re grainy.

Thankfully, the days of having to AirDrop to snap photos are finally a thing of the past, thanks to a big update to WhatsApp.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of WhatsApp’s parent company Meta, has announced that you can now send photos on WhatsApp in HD quality.

Here’s everything you need to know about the update, including how to send HD photos to your friends.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of WhatsApp’s parent company Meta, has announced that you can now send photos on WhatsApp in HD quality.

How to send HD photos on WhatsApp

Open WhatsApp and tap on the conversation you’d like to send an HD photo to.
Tap the ‘+’ symbol at the bottom left of the screen, then Photo & Video Library
Select the photo you’d like to share and you should now see an HD option at the top of the screen.
Tap this, then tap the blue arrow at the bottom right of your screen and the photo will be sent in HD.

Zuckerberg shared the news on his Facebook page, posting a video showing how the feature works, along with the caption: “Photo sharing on WhatsApp just got an update: now you can send in HD.”

WhatsApp says the new feature is suitable “for special moments that you want your friends and family to enjoy in every little detail.”

To try it yourself, just open the WhatsApp app and tap on the conversation you want to send an HD photo on.

Tap the ‘+’ symbol at the bottom left of the screen, then Photo & Video Library.

Select the photo you’d like to share and you should now see a new HD option at the top of the screen.

Tap this, then tap the blue arrow icon at the bottom right of your screen and the photo will be sent in HD.

“To ensure that sharing photos via WhatsApp remains fast and reliable, standard quality will continue to be the default option in which photos are sent,” WhatsApp explained.

“If you receive a photo when you have low bandwidth connectivity, you can choose photo by photo if you want to keep the standard version or upgrade to HD.”

WhatsApp says that standard quality will continue to be the default option in which photos are sent, “to ensure that photo sharing via WhatsApp remains fast and reliable.”

As always, these photos will be protected by WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption.

This ensures that only you and the person you are communicating with, and no one in between, not even WhatsApp, can see the HD photo.

HD Photos will roll out globally in the coming weeks, and HD Videos will be available soon as well.

The release of the new feature comes shortly after experts at WABetaInfo He claimed that WhatsApp is working on a major update that will make it much easier to hide messages from prying colleagues.

The WhatsApp Desktop update will include a new lock screen feature, which requires a password to view conversations.

“When you enable this feature, you make sure that even if someone gains access to your computer while you’re away, they won’t be able to access your WhatsApp chats and messages without entering the password,” WABetaInfo explained.

THE BEST WHATSAPP ALTERNATIVES

If you’re considering deleting WhatsApp, you’ll be happy to know that there are several alternative apps to choose from:

1. telegram

With over 400 million users, Telegram is one of the most popular WhatsApp alternatives.

While it looks a lot like WhatsApp, what sets it apart is the fact that it offers the option to set messages to self-destruct after a set amount of time, leaving no trace behind.

Telegram also offers end-to-end encryption.

However, as a WhatsApp spokesperson noted, Telegram “doesn’t offer end-to-end encryption by default, so it’s not necessarily more secure than WhatsApp.”

2. Signal

Signal is one of the most secure messaging applications, thanks to the fact that it is open source.

This means that the app’s code is publicly available for viewing, making it nearly impossible for app creators to sneak into backdoors that could allow governments or hackers to snoop on their messages.

3.iMessage

If you’re using an iPhone, you might consider simply switching to iMessage, Apple’s own messaging app.

The app has a number of impressive features including no character limits, the ability to send images and videos, and of course, Apple’s animated emoji feature, Animoji.

Unfortunately, iMessage is only available for iPhone users, so you’ll have a hard time interacting with anyone using an Android.

4. Google messages

Google’s answer to iMessage is Google Messages, an Android-only messaging service.

The app replaces your standard SMS app and integrates with all Google apps and services, making it easy to share pictures or use the Google Assistant.

5. Facebook Messenger

If you’ve been put off using WhatsApp because it shares data with Facebook, Facebook Messenger might not be the best option for you.

However, the app offers a number of useful features, including games, secret conversations, and video calls.