Technologies

Make your WhatsApp messages disappear by default

You can now turn on disappearing messages by default and pick whether you want a message to fade after one, seven or 90 days.

WhatsApp is adding more options to control your disappearing messages, the popular app announced Monday. You can now turn on disappearing messages by default for all new chats, and you can choose how long you have until the messages fade.

When you enable the feature, every one-on-one chat that you or someone else starts will be set to disappear after your chosen amount of time: 24 hours, seven days or 90 days. The app is also adding the option to turn on disappearing messages when you create a group chat.

The feature is optional and doesn’t alter or delete any of your existing chats, according to WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook’s parent company Meta. But when you have disappearing messages turned on, WhatsApp will display a message in your chats that tells people this is the default option you’ve picked.

Here’s how you can turn on disappearing messages by default for all new individual chats.

How to make your WhatsApp messages disappear by default

Whether you’re using WhatsApp on an iPhone or Android, turning on default disappearing messages seems to take just a few steps. According to WhatsApp’s help page about disappearing messages, after you open the app and go to Settings (it’s located in the bottom right corner of the screen), tap Account, then Privacy and finally Default message timer. From there you can turn on disappearing messages and select how long you would like to wait until messages fade.

WhatsApp stresses you should only use disappearing messages with trusted individuals. Although the app makes your messages vanish after a set amount of time, it’s possible the person you’re chatting with can forward, copy, save or take a screenshot of the message before it disappears.

WhatsApp introduced disappearing messages in November 2020. The feature originally worked for individual chats only, and the duration of time before the message disappeared was seven days. Earlier this year, WhatsApp added View Once, a feature that causes videos and pictures to vanish from a chat after they’ve been opened.

For more, check out how to declutter Facebook messenger without deleting chats and how to transfer your Facebook photos and posts to other platforms. If you want to delete more than your chat history, take a look at how to permanently delete your Facebook account and how to disappear from the internet for good.

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The Apple Watch Series 11 Brings High Blood Pressure Alerts

Apple’s newest flagship watch can detect possible signs of hypertension.

The Apple Watch Series 11 made its debut at Apple’s «awe dropping» event in Cupertino, California, on Tuesday, vying for a spot on your wrist with a mix of fresh updates including new hypertension notifications, sleep score analysis, 5G connectivity and increased battery life.

With a decade of upgrades and refinements, the Series 11 represents a big move for Apple as it leans further into its health and fitness features across its Apple Watch lineup. Alongside the Series 11, Apple also unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3, along with the new iPhone 17 lineup (including the brand new iPhone Air), and the latest generation of AirPods (Pro 3).

Both the Series 11 and the new Ultra 3 will ship with WatchOS 26, which Apple previewed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The update brings a cleaner «liquid glass» UI, live translation for text messages, a redesigned Notes app for your wrist and Workout Buddy; Apple’s new AI-powered companion that offers real-time motivation based on your personal metrics during certain workouts.

Pricing and availability

The Apple Watch Series 11 is available for preorder now and will hit stores on September 19. Pricing starts at $399 (£369, AU$679) for the 42mm aluminum Wi-Fi model, while the LTE version of the same watch runs $499. The titanium LTE version of the 42mm model is priced at $699.

New health features

The biggest addition is a feature that can notify you when you’re showing signs of hypertension or high blood pressure. The Apple Watch will send alerts if it notices consistent patterns over a 30-day period that could warrant a follow-up with a doctor, and then allow users to log their blood pressure on the Health app (from a cuff) to confirm.

Another health upgrade is the new Sleep Score, which grades your sleep session on a scale of 1 to 100 or low to excellent. The watch doesn’t just hand you a number with no context; it breaks down your score and shows you factors that may be contributing like bedtime, sleep interruptions and duration, highlighting specific factors that may have impacted your sleep.

Design updates

Visually, the Series 11 looks much like the Series 10, with the same thin profile and edge-to-edge display. But there’s a subtle, practical upgrade: the aluminum model now uses stronger, more scratch-resistant glass, making it more durable for everyday wear.

Connectivity and battery

For the first time, the LTE model of the Series 11 supports 5G connectivity, which Apple says is not only faster but also more efficient at conserving battery life when in use.

Battery life has also received a bump. The Series 11 now promises up to 24 hours on a charge, compared to the 18 hours of the Series 10. Apple tends to be conservative with its battery claims. In real-world use, we may see it stretch beyond the official promise as I’ve consistently been able to stretch out the Series 10 claim to almost 30 hours.

This is a developing story. Follow all of CNET’s 2025 Apple Event coverage for live updates, hands-on impressions, and more announcements as they’re revealed.