WhatsApp adds photo filters and albums to make chats more visual

Just a few months after WhatsApp added Snapchat-style image updates and Siri-integration, the Facebook-owned messaging app is evolving again on iOS. With a new update, available now, WhatsApp gets even more visual, adding filters, albums and reply shortcuts to make it easier to communicate with your buddies.

Now you can add one of the five new filters to your imagery, with pop, black and white, cool, chrome and film ready to add more pizazz to your photos, GIFs and videos. In addition, the new album feature groups any four photos or videos into easily-digested layouts. Your friends can open the albums and swipe through the single posts, too. If you're a fan of group chats, you know keeping track of replies in the fast-moving conversations can be tricky, so WhatsApp has added a new quick-reply feature. Simply swipe the message you want to respond to and it will pop down to the bottom of the chat window for a threaded reply.

According to TechCrunch, these features are iOS-only for now; an Android update may happen in the future, though there isn't a specific timeline to do so. Adding more visual messaging options could help WhatsApp stay relevant with teens, who seem to be the demographic that use messaging apps the most.