WhatsApp Android Beta Gets 'Mute' Button in Notifications, Reportedly Sets Stage for Stickers

WhatsApp last week reportedly started testing 'Mark as Read' and 'Mute' buttons to make it easier for users to take actions on new WhatsApp messages directly from their notifications. Now, the Facebook-backed instant messaging app has rolled out the Mute button for all users having the latest WhatsApp beta version on their Android devices. The button emerges on the message notification once you receive more than 51 messages from one contact. Separately, WhatsApp has been reported to have added a sticker preview to start testing stickers on its platform. Stickers on WhatsApp were notably announced at Facebook's F8 developer conference back in May to counter messaging apps such as WeChat and Skype that both are offering stickers for a long time.

As its name suggests, the Mute button lets users easily mute messages from a contact that has sent you a large number of messages - more than 51 messages to be precise - without accessing WhatsApp. It sits against the existing 'Reply To' button in the notification panel.