WhatsApp can now preview voice messages before sending them

WhatsApp recently released a preview feature for voice messages, so you can see if your rumblings are understandable before sending it to others. The Meta-owned messaging service said the feature has been rolling out gradually in recent weeks, and is now available on all platforms, including iOS, Android, web and desktop.

According to a help page for the feature, the option to preview the voice message appears after pressing the stop button to end the recording. You can then preview it with the triangular Play icon, delete it from the Trash can icon, or send it with the Send button.

The audio previews are a part of a series of new updates that have either been released or are reportedly in development around WhatsApp's voice messages feature. Earlier this year, the service added the ability to adjust the playback speed of Voice Notes while listening (perfect for quickly retrieving long and rambling messages), and WABetaInfo reports that recording of voice messages can be adjusted as well. It will also be possible to pause and resume. We have been able to verify that the latter feature is available in the beta version of WhatsApp for iOS.

But more interesting features may be on the horizon. In September, WhatsApp confirmed that it was in the early stages of developing a new voice transcription feature that could one day allow you to read rather than listen to the transcription of a voice message. Then, in October, WABetaInfo reported that it also received hints of a "Global Voice Message Player" feature that would let users listen to voice notes while browsing other WhatsApp chats.

There is no information available on when (or in some cases even) WhatsApp might roll out these new voice message features. But being able to preview a voice note before sending it is a promising start.