WhatsApp, one of the most used instant messaging apps, is going to introduce a new feature that will allow users to have more control over their internet data usage. With over 3.5 billion installs worldwide, the Meta-owned app has been constantly introducing new features to improve user experience. This time, this feature can prove to be a game-changer for those who are troubled by high data consumption.

WhatsApp is working on a data saver feature that will prevent automatic file downloads, which eat up both device space and data.

Data consumption due to auto-download

WhatsApp has become the main tool for sharing photos and videos. From friends and family to work and school groups, media files flood our devices daily. But when auto-download is turned on, these media files, regardless of their size or importance, often eat up a large part of our data.

Now, WhatsApp is testing a feature that allows users to control the quality of photos and videos. This means that you can now avoid downloading every media file in high resolution, saving both your data and storage space.

WABetaInfo reveals the upcoming feature.

How will the feature work
If someone sends you a high-quality image or video, WhatsApp will automatically create a compressed (standard) version of it. If your auto-download settings are set to download only the standard version, you will get the same version even if the sender has sent the file in high quality.

Better control over data and storage
Currently, WhatsApp's auto-download settings download the sent files in whatever quality they were sent in, leading to unnecessary use of mobile data. This change will eliminate this problem by giving users the option to pre-select their preferred download quality, Standard or High.

This feature will be especially useful in group chats, where users often receive many unwanted photos and videos. By limiting downloads to lower-quality versions, users can reduce data usage and prevent storage from filling up quickly.

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