Meta rolls out significant updates to WhatsApp, introducing browser-based voice and video calls, call transfer, group waiting rooms, and quality improvements to unify messaging across phone, browser and desktop platforms.
WhatsApp is adding a cluster of calling upgrades aimed at making conversations behave more consistently across phone, browser and desktop. According to Meta, users will soon be able to place and receive audio and video calls directly in WhatsApp Web, without installing the desktop app, while also gaining tools such as call transfer, a waiting room for group calls, better first-moment video quality and background noise suppression.
The most significant change is browser-based calling. Meta says WhatsApp Web will support one-to-one and group voice and video calls, extending a feature set that had previously been more closely tied to the mobile app and desktop software. The company says the calls remain end-to-end encrypted and carry no extra charge. Android Central and 9to5Google reported that the feature was first appearing for beta users before a broader rollout, suggesting a staged release rather than an instant global launch.
WhatsApp is also addressing a long-standing frustration for multi-device users: starting a call on one device and moving it to another. Meta says call transfer will let people shift an ongoing call between devices with less disruption. For group calls, the new waiting room gives organisers more control by allowing them to approve participants before they join. That makes WhatsApp more practical for larger ad hoc meetings, not just casual chats.
Two smaller additions are meant to improve call quality. Meta says QuickHD will sharpen video in the opening seconds of a call, when connections often look weakest, while noise suppression is designed to cut background sound. Taken together, the updates point to a clearer strategy: WhatsApp is trying to make its calling tools feel less like a mobile-only convenience and more like a seamless cross-device communications platform.
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