Evidence of WhatsApp introducing a video calling feature has been around since last year, and earlier this month more evidence surfaced which showed the option presented in the app. Now thanks to the folks at Fone Arena, they have discovered that the video calling option has surfaced inside the latest beta of WhatsApp for Android.
As you can see in the screenshot above, it shows the video calling option within the app itself. However pressing resulted in the screenshot to the left which says that video calling is unavailable at this time. Interestingly enough it seems that this feature appears to be activated from the server side, meaning that eventually you could see the option in the beta.
We’re not sure when the feature will go live for everyone, but if the voice call feature is anything to go by, we reckon it might be a while before it does, and when it does, it will probably roll out in stages so not everyone will be able to see the feature at once. If and when the feature does launch, it will certainly make WhatsApp a pretty well-rounded application.
The app currently features support for voice calls, and recently its web and desktop version also supports document sharing, so throw in support for video calls and you’ve got yourself an app that could rival the likes of Skype. Combined with its 1 billion or so users, Skype could have a worthy contender in the making.