The beta version of the WhatsApp Android app was recently updated with new control options for storage usage, allowing users a larger degree of control over the manner in which the popular communications service uses the internal flash memory of their devices. Following the update to the build number 2.17.340, all WhatsApp users should be able to take advantage of granular data storage controls which the Facebook-owned instant messaging service introduced on iOS a while back. The new version of the app adds a “Storage usage” section to the “Data and storage usage” settings interface from where you’re able to not only see the exact amount of internal memory WhatsApp is currently using, but can also sort individual chats by their size and inspect their other metrics like the number of sent text messages and particular file types.
The functionality can not only identify different attachment types but also delete them without impacting the rest of the conversation(s) in which they were shared. To access granular storage management controls in WhatsApp for individual chats, simply tap on any conversation in the newly added menu. Initial reports suggest that the functionality works as intended despite being a beta feature, though it remains to be seen whether any bugs related to the service end up being discovered in the coming weeks. The new controls are a significant improvement compared to the previous solution which only allows you to manually delete messages or entire conversations together with their media.
Much like the vast majority of other WhatsApp features introduced through the app’s beta channel, granular storage controls are expected to make their way to the stable version of the mobile tool in the near future, presumably by October. Being an experimental functionality, it’s still possible that WhatsApp decides to tweak this particular capability of the app, though that doesn’t seem like a highly probable scenario seeing how the current version of the service is virtually identical to its iOS counterpart and WhatsApp is usually always pursuing a consistent user experience across all platforms. Users interested in trying out the new feature before it’s available to everyone can do so by enrolling in the app’s beta program and downloading its latest experimental build by following the Google Play Store banner below.
