What to know
- WhatsApp for Android is rolling out the feature to transcribe voice notes for those in the beta channel.
- Enable Transcriptions for voice notes from Settings > Chats.
- Transcriptions are available in five languages – English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Hindi.
A year after the feature was first introduced to its iOS version, WhatsApp is finally about to introduce voice message transcriptions to Android as well. Currently, the feature is rolling out to Android users in the beta channel (version 2.24.15.5). Here’s everything you need to know to enable and transcribe voice messages on WhatsApp.
How to transcribe voice messages on WhatsApp
Transcribing voice notes is not only an accessibility feature for those with hearing impairment, but it also allows users to carry on the conversation using voice notes in an environment where it’s not easy to hear them. For those who receive long voice messages, transcripts provide a way to quickly read the message instead of listening to the complete audio clip.
- If you’re part of the WhatsApp beta channel, and the feature is available to you, you can enable it by going to Settings > Chats.
- Once enabled, you’ll be asked to download the language data packs that will be used to transcribe voice messages.
- To transcribe a voice message, tap and hold on it and select Transcribe.
- Once transcribed, the text will appear under the voice message.
WhatsApp relies on the speech recognition feature on your device so that the transcripts remain end-to-end encrypted.
Voice message transcriptions are available in five languages – English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and Hindi. This indicates that the feature will initially be rolled out to users in the regions and countries where these languages are spoken widely. The iOS version of the app supports even more languages, which tells us that the feature is bound to roll out to more regions in the future.
