WhatsApp Adds Filters and Backgrounds to Video Calls for People Without Personalities

Although we’re probably past the peak of video calling, with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing people to use this medium, it’s still an important way to communicate with others. So, in its infinite wisdom, WhatsApp has decided to add filters and backgrounds to video calls.

WhatsApp Adds Filters and Backgrounds to Video Calls

In a post on the WhatsApp Blog, WhatsApp has announced that filters and backgrounds are coming to video calls. Filters will change the way people see you on a call, while Backgrounds, as the name suggests, will turn the background into something other than your own reality.

At launch, there are 10 filters and 10 backgrounds to choose from. The filters are Warm, Cool, Black & White, Light Leak, Dreamy, Prism Light, Fisheye, Vintage TV, Frosted Glass, and Duo Tone. The backgrounds are Living Room, Office, Cafe, Pebbles, Foodie, Smoosh, Beach, Sunset, Celebration, and Forest.

In addition to filters and backgrounds, WhatsApp is also adding Touch Up and Low Light options. These can be used to enhance your surroundings, changing what others on the call can see. The aim is to make you feel more confident and comfortable about being on video.

These effects will be available to everyone using WhatsApp over the next few weeks, so, if you’re interested, make sure to keep WhatsApp updated. Once they arrive, look for the effects icon at the top right of the screen while on a call to access the new filters and backgrounds.

These might sound cool, but you shouldn’t use them

WhatsApp suggests that it added these filters and backgrounds because conversations on the platform should always be “fun and expressive.” The company also claims that they add a “more personal touch” and create a “more playful atmosphere.” But I doubt if that’s a true assessment.

Maybe it’s because I’m old and cranky, but I find using filters and backgrounds in video calls very annoying. We know you’re not sitting behind frosted glass or calling from the past when everything was black and white. And we know you’re sitting in your drab office rather than sitting at the beach or in a cafe. So, stop it already.

Apart from the above, WhatsApp is a little late to the party here. Most video calling platforms like Zoom and Google Meet have been allowing you to change your background or add filters for several years now, with most of them rushing to add features at the peak of the COVID pandemic. But WhatsApp has, rather bizarrely, waited until 2024 to do the same with WhatsApp video calling.

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