WhatsApp is gearing up to give Snapchat a run for its money with its latest feature, simply called Status. Essentially, Status boils down to a copy on Snapchat's Stories feature with one of WhatsApp's hallmark attractions: end-to-end encryption.
Rather than sticking with text, WhatsApp says, WhatsApp's Status feature lets you quickly snap a photo or video to share with your friends. You can spice things up by doodling on your creation, or adding things like emoji and text. Once posted, Status updates will disappear after 24 hours.
WhatsApp's Status is just the latest in a series of moves from its parent company Facebook to take on Snapchat. Just last year, Instagram, another Facebook-owned company, launched a similar version of this with its own Instagram Stories. Unlike Instagram's prominent placement of Stories, however, WhatsApp Statuses will live in a separate tab within the app.
Status is in the process of rolling out now on Android, iOS and Windows Phone, so it could take some time to show up for everyone.
