WhatsApp drops integrated translator feature – However, there is a catch.

WhatsApp has finally launched a built-in message translation tool for Android and iPhone users, following years of requests, to eliminate language barriers in personal chats, groups, and Channels.

To translate a message, users must long-press an incoming message, select the ‘Translate’ option, and specify the source or target language. Users may download their frequently utilised languages for expedited offline translations.

Meta has proven that translations occur on-device instead of in the cloud, hence enhancing user privacy protection.

Availability of languages
iPhone Users: The tool will facilitate translations in over 19 languages at its inception.

Users of Android Initially restricted to six languages—English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic—with additional languages anticipated subsequently.

Android receives unique thread translations.

WhatsApp is providing Android users with an additional feature: thread translations. This facilitates the automatic translation of a whole chat thread, so conserving time by obviating the necessity to translate messages individually.

iPhone users, nevertheless, must still translate individual texts manually.

Until until, WhatsApp users depended on third-party applications such as Swift Translate and Todalingua to overcome language barriers. This change obviates that necessity, aligning WhatsApp with competitors that already provide integrated translation tools.

In a blog entry, WhatsApp stated:

“We anticipate that this feature will dismantle language barriers and enable users to forge deeper connections with loved ones and communities worldwide.”