WhatsApp launched the latest version of its messaging application on iOS, which now allows users to send and receive GIFs. According to the app update text in iTunes, the new feature will allow users to send and receive GIFs, including Live Photos and shorter videos, both of which can be now converted to animated GIFs.
For videos, the clip has to be six seconds or shorter, in order to be sent as a GIF. Meanwhile, you can send a Live Photo as a GIF by using the 3D Touch feature from the “Attach” interface. From there, you’ll choose the option “Select as GIF” when selecting the Live Photo from your Photo and Video Library.
While you can send GIFs (and Live Photos or videos) from your phone, WhatsApp also includes an integrated GIF search engine, powered by Tenor or Giphy. You can search through the available GIFs to find those you want to share, and mark select items as Favorites to be used again in the future.
Finally, users can now send Live Photos as GIFs. To do so, users can tap the Attach button, then tap Photo & Video Library to browse the content on their camera rolls. From there, users can 3D Touch any Live Photo and tap “Select as GIF” to send the Live Photo as an animated GIF.
These GIF features are now rolling out to users on iOS but all of these changes have not yet rolled out to the Android version of the app, which could be why WhatsApp hasn’t yet made an official announcement about the update.
WhatsApp is available to download for free on the iTunes App Store.