It’s a dilemma that many WhatsApp users face: which photo should you use as your profile picture?

Last year WhatsApp launched Avatars, allowing you to create your cartoon doppelganger to use as your profile picture. 

Now, the messaging app has made the creation of these avatars even simpler. 

While users previously had to manually create these cartoons, WhatsApp now lets you create them within seconds – using a selfie. 

Here’s how to try the new feature on your WhatsApp profile. 

Last year WhatsApp launched Avatars , allowing you to create your cartoon doppelganger to use as your profile picture. Now, the messaging app has made the creation of these avatars even simpler

Last year WhatsApp launched Avatars , allowing you to create your cartoon doppelganger to use as your profile picture. Now, the messaging app has made the creation of these avatars even simpler

How to create an avatar with a photo 

  1. Open WhatsApp, then Settings.
  2. Tap Avatar, then tap Create your Avatar.
  3. Tap Get started.
  4. Tap Allow camera, then Take photo.
  5. Tap the camera to take a photo.
  6. You can either retake your photo or create your avatar manually.
  7. Tap a skin tone, then tap Next.
  8. Tap Make more edits or tap Done.

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Meta rolled out avatars on WhatsApp in December last year, having seen the success of the tool on both Facebook and Instagram. 

According to the tech giant, more than one billion Meta Avatars have been creatred to date. 

Until now, users have had to create these avatars from scratch, selecting everything from the skin colour to the oufit. 

Now, Meta has made it even easier to create avatars.  

‘You can now take a live selfie and in seconds we’ll give you a suggested avatar option generated from your photo,’ WhatsApp explained. 

‘You can pick from the options provided and further personalize them to best represent yourself.’

To try out the new feature, open the WhatsApp app on your smartphone, and tap Settings. 

Tap ‘Avatar’, then tap ‘Create your Avatar’. 

Tap ‘Get Started’, then ‘Allow Camera’ and ‘Take Photo’. 

'You can now take a live selfie and in seconds we’ll give you a suggested avatar option generated from your photo,' WhatsApp explained (stock image)

‘You can now take a live selfie and in seconds we’ll give you a suggested avatar option generated from your photo,’ WhatsApp explained (stock image) 

Snap a selfie, then select a skin tone. If you’re not happy with your selfie, you can choose to retake it at this stage. 

Within seconds, the app will come up with a suggested avatar, based on your selfie. 

If you’re happy with it, tap Done, or tap ‘Make more edits’ to adjust your cartoon.  

‘Your photo won’t be used for any other purpose and will begin being processed for deletion immediately,’ WhatsApp reassured.  

So far, the feature has been tested with ‘some users’ around the world, and will now being rolled out globally from today. 

The new feature comes shortly after WhatsApp launched the ability to set Secret Codes on private chats

As the name suggests, the feature lets you set unique passwords on conversations, ensuring they stay away from any prying eyes. 

‘We’re launching secret code, an additional way to protect those chats and make them harder to find if someone has access to your phone or you share a phone with someone else,’ WhatsApp said. 

BEST WHATSAPP ALTERNATIVES

If you’re considering deleting WhatsApp, you’ll be happy to hear that there are several alternative apps to choose from:

1. Telegram

With more than 400 million users, Telegram is one of the most popular WhatsApp alternatives. 

While it looks very similar to WhatsApp, what sets it apart is the fact that it gives the option to set messages to self-destruct after a given period of time, leaving no trace. 

Telegram also offers end-to-end encryption.

However, as a WhatsApp spokesperson pointed out, Telegram ‘does not offer end-to-end encryption by default so it’s not necessarily more secure than WhatsApp’.

2. Signal 

Signal is one of the most secure messaging apps, thanks to the fact that it is open-source. 

This means that the code for the app is publicly available to view, making it near-impossible for the app’s creators to sneak in any backdoors that could allow governments or hackers to spy on your messages.

3. iMessage

If you use an iPhone, you may consider simply switching to iMessage, Apple’s own messaging app. 

The app has a number of impressive features included no character limits, the ability to send pictures and videos, and of course Apple’s animated emoji feature, Animoji.

Unfortunately, iMessage is only available for iPhone users, so you’ll struggle to interact with anyone using an Android. 

4. Google Messages

Google’s answer to iMessage is Google Messages, an Android-only messaging service. 

The app replaces your standard SMS app, and integrates with all of Google’s apps and services, making it easy to share images or use Google Assistant. 

5. Facebook Messenger

If you were put off using WhatsApp due to its sharing of data with Facebook, Facebook Messenger may not be the best option for you.

However, the app offers a number of helpful features, including games, secret conversations and video calls. 

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk

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