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Local shares fell on Friday as investors make last-minute adjustments to their portfolios ahead of the main index’s rebalancing, while unease over rising infections grows. 
WhatsApp is testing a number of new features for the iOS and Android versions of its messaging application.
This is according to WABetaInfo, which reported that the beta versions of both applications have been updated to include new functionality.
The WhatsApp beta update for iOS comprises changes to the voice note system, which allows you to send audio clips to your friends by recording your voice from directly within the app.
The report said WhatsApp has made a UI change for this feature, altering the progress bar animation for voice noted when played.
Most notably, it has also changed the way read receipts work with voice notes.
Previously, even if you had read receipts disabled to prevent others from knowing when you have read their messages, voice notes would still be marked as “read” when listened to.
This has been changed in the latest WhatsApp update for iOS, with the sender no longer being notified when the recipient plays their voice message.
“We dont know if WhatsApp will restore the old behaviour in the next updates (because they didnt implement this change in the Android version yet), but at the moment the situation is so,” WABetaInfo said.
Other changes
The latest beta update for WhatsApp on Android includes support for a wider number of stickers, as well as the ability to important third-party sticker packs, according to the report.
Users can import animated custom sticker packs, as well as their own stickers created using an application such as Sticker Maker.
To be imported successfully, sticker packs must include at least three different stickers and must be either static or animated – not a combination of both.
This new sticker feature and the voice note changes are implemented in the latest beta version of WhatsApp for both platforms.
It is unclear when this functionality will be available to the general public, but those who have signed up for the beta should be able to access them now.
