Facebook is ready to roll out WhatsApp Video Calling feature for everyone, after testing it briefly with selected group of users in May. The video calling on WhatsApp is perhaps the most awaited feature. Soon the video calling feature will be available on almost every Android, iOS and Windows OS devices.
Video calling is one of the most requested features from people in India. We’re proud to have the opportunity to launch this feature in India, where we now have 160 million users, and we look forward to seeing people use WhatsApp to talk to their friends and loved ones face to face, says Jan Koum, CEO & Co-Founder, WhatsApp.
How to Activate WhatsApp Video Calling Feature
Once you are sure the feature is available on your device-
- Open Whatsapp and select a person from your Whatsapp contact list to make a video call
- Click on the call icon on the upper right corner
- A popup will appear asking if you want to make the video call or not
If you don’t see a popup appearing after clicking on the call icon, wait for few days until the video calling feature is available for your device OS.
WhatsApp Video Call Quality
While a sizable set of users are yet to experience the feature, few got the feature enabled on their devices. While testing the feature, they found that the quality of video call through WhatsApp is good only if they are connected to high-speed internet. Video calls through WhatsApp on mobile internet or broadband with average speed don’t complement the feature.
WhatsApp is not the first messaging app offering video call feature. Facebook users have been enjoying video calls for over one and half years now. However, many other popular messaging apps are yet to offer video calling feature. With over 1 billion users across the globe, WhatsApp does have the edge over competitors like Google Allo and WeChat.
Video Call: The Future of Communication
The continuous improvement in mobile infrastructure in developed and developing nations, such as India, has helped people to take note of real-time communication. The Web real-time communication market is expected to reach US$4.45 billion by 2020, with CAGR of 50.9% between 2015 and 2020.
Considering the exploded adoption of Smartphone, mobile internet, and improved internet infrastructure, most of the internet giants are betting big on video content and video communication. While Facebook is constantly trying to rope in video calling users through two apps – Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, Google is also trying to grab a sizable share of the market through the recently launched AI-powered Google Allo messaging app.
