WhatsApp for iOS Gets a Special Tab for Archived Chats

Where do archived WhatsApp chats go? Earlier, one needed to search for them in the archive. But the latest beta of WhatsApp for iOS shows there can be a different approach. It’s especially useful if suddenly it’s you who needs to review or revitalize these chats.

The latest beta shows a more flexible approach. First, it shows all the archived chats in a separate tab where all of them are arranged the similar way. Second, it has an option that lets you choose whether to unarchive a chat when you receive a new message there. In the current version, if a new message is sent to an archived chat, it automatically returns to the general chat tab. In addition, the Archived Chats tab will show the number of unread chats and the “@” sign if someone mentions you there.

The new feature is available as an option. If you want it the way it used to be, you need to just choose not to activate “Keep chats archived” option in the Settings. It’s useful if you don’t have archived chats at all, or if you archive them to never ever return to them.

So far this new treatment of archive chats only appears in WhatsApp for iOS, and only in beta version. It’s not sure when (and whether) the new feature will make it to the stable release. But the rumor has it that the update is on its way to all the iPhones around.