WhatsApp Tests Notification Bubbles on Android: Floating Chats for Faster and More Intuitive Multitasking

WhatsApp continues to evolve and experiment with new solutions to enhance the user experience on Android. Among the innovations currently under development are the so-called notification bubbles, a feature designed to make managing conversations quicker, smoother, and more integrated with the operating system.

This new option is based on a feature already present in the Android system, which allows apps to display notifications in the form of floating icons on the screen. Applied to WhatsApp, this technology will enable users to view and respond to messages without having to fully open the application.

The functioning is simple yet effective: when a new message arrives, a small bubble with the contact’s image will appear. Tapping it will open a compact chat window, allowing real-time reading and responding. This system will keep conversations always accessible, regardless of the app in use, whether it’s the home screen or platforms like Instagram.

What is WhatsApp's goal with this new feature? The main aim of the notification bubbles is to improve multitasking. For instance, while watching a video or using another app, it will be possible to quickly respond to a message without interrupting the ongoing activity. This reduces the need to constantly switch from one app to another, making the experience more immediate and less fragmented.

From a technical perspective, the bubbles are officially supported starting from Android 10, but they work more stably and comprehensively on Android 11 and later versions. However, their availability depends on both the device settings and the app’s own support. It’s possible that WhatsApp may choose to limit the feature to newer devices to ensure better performance.

At the same time, WhatsApp is also working on other changes, such as redesigning the top bar of the app, where the name might be replaced by the official logo. This update could be related to the introduction of new features, like a different management of status updates. Currently, the notification bubbles are still in development and are not available even for beta testers.