WhatsApp is testing custom wallpapers for voice calls

WhatsApp logo (Image credit: Harish Jonnalagadda / iMore)

What you need to know

WhatsApp is testing a change that will make custom wallpapers visible even during voice calls.
The default wallpaper is now shown during calls currently.
The new change is being tested in a new WhatsApp beta build.

The popular instant messaging app WhatsApp is testing a new feature that will make custom wallpapers visible even during voice calls. Right now, WhatsApp selects the custom wallpaper when placing a call but that all changed in a recent iPhone app update.

As first reported by WABetaInfo, WhatsApp the same feature could use the wallpaper from a chat as its choice for in-call wallpapers, too.

As you can see in this screenshot, WhatsApp shows up as the chat wallpaper when you place a voice call. At the moment, WhatsApp does not show up as the real chat wallpaper (since you can select different wallpapers for different chats) but WhatsApp always selects the default one. Note that, since this feature is under development, things may change before the release of the feature, so the call wallpaper may reflect the chat wallpaper in the future.

Whastapp Voice Call Wallpaper (Image credit: WABetaInfo)

WhatsApp is one of the best iPhone apps for people who want to be able to send and receive instant messages with people who are on multiple platforms, but it can also be used for calls as well. Being able to display custom wallpapers when in a call isn't a huge change of course, but it's a small quality of life improvement that should be noted.

There is of course no telling when this change will be made available to everyone or if indeed it ever well, but we can wait and see if a future App Store WhatsApp update adds the feature in the future.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.

Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.