WhatsApp scraps Edit feature for changing sent messages

The arrival of Unsend, however, significantly softens the blow

WhatsApp appears to have scrapped plans to let users edit messages they’ve already sent through the app.

The feature was leaked earlier this year, along with “Unsend”, which started rolling out to users today.

However, the edit function is unlikely to come to the app any time soon.

“Note that WhatsApp is no longer developing the edit message feature,” reports WABetaInfo, a site that tests upcoming WhatsApp features.

Fortunately, the arrival of Unsend – which is officially called Delete for Everyone – significantly softens the blow.

If you mistype something in a conversation, you can simply Unsend it by tapping and holding it, hitting the Delete symbol and selecting Delete for Everyone.

You can then retype it correctly and send it as a new message.

While a dedicated Edit tool would certainly make the process smoother, it isn’t entirely necessary.

Delete for Everyone, meanwhile, is a huge addition to the app, and could help save users from potentially embarrassing slip-ups.

However, both you and your recipient need to be using the latest version of WhatsApp, and it only works for messages you’ve sent within the last seven minutes.