With the latest version Signal is equal to WhatsApp

Signal or WhatsApp? After Signal Messenger's latest update, there are fewer and fewer differences between the two apps

The great flight of users from WhatsApp and its new privacy policy continues to other messaging apps and Signal has decided to keep up. In the latest Signal Messenger update, new features already present in WhatsApp arrive and the differences between the two become minimal.

To reveal the contents of Signal's app update is the WABetaInfo website, which explains how the beta version can be downloaded both from the Google Play Store and from the TestFlight webpage. The goal thus becomes to offer the same service as the Facebook-owned chat, and for this reason the app has started developing an update that includes features loved by WhatsApp users. Starting with the next version, new features such as custom chat backgrounds, animated stickers and the ability to add a description to your profile will be available. Here's what's new.

Signal like WhatsApp: what's new between backgrounds, statuses and stickers

The new version of Signal seems to have an interface pretty much the same as WhatsApp, with the ability to change backgrounds for chats, choosing contact name, call buttons, solid colors or custom images, as well as a function to scroll through the available backgrounds.

Also in graphics, now Signal also allows you to add a description on the contact information page. Finally, animated stickers arrive, as well as the ability to create your own from the Signal Desktop app and share them with friends and contacts.

Signal like WhatsApp: file downloads, calls and groups

New features for Signal also arrive among the functions for calls, with a low data mode that is already implemented in WhatsApp and allows you to reduce data usage when calling through the app. Also, for iOS devices, you'll be able to see your chats on an iOS share sheet, while for both operating systems you'll be able to enable or disable automatic media downloads.

As for groups, new features arrive here as well. Group calls see an increase in participants from 5 to 8, just like in the rival Facebook-owned chat. In addition, the app will allow you to create a group invitation link that can be shared with other Signal users.

Why choose Signal if you're fleeing WhatsApp

The announcement of WhatsApp's new Terms of Service has started a stampede to other apps like Signal and Telegram, though at the moment the Facebook chat changes don't mean anything to users: both calls and conversations with friends and family are still end-to-end encrypted.

Apps like Signal and Telegram both use the same end-to-end encryption protocol implemented by WhatsApp and therefore provide the same level of security. If Telegram thanked its users for the record number of activated accounts, Signal decided to do so by implementing all those features that it didn't have and that were already available in WhatsApp, so that those who choose it don't miss anything.