Telegram's Latest Massive Update Includes 1,000-Viewer Group Video Calls

Telegram, the popular messaging app alternative to WhatsApp, has greatly expanded its video calls feature. Among the changes is new support for 1,000-person group video calls, making Telegram a solid alternative to other video chatting apps. In addition, Telegram has also improved video messages, screen sharing, video playback, and more.

Telegram has underscored the reason it remains so popular despite the rise of alternatives. The company's latest video update, which comes only weeks after it added group video calls support, allows up to 1,000 people to participate in the same group video call.

Only 30 users in the call are able to broadcast their own videos, including screen-sharing, during these calls, while up to 1,000 view the content. Telegram says that it plans to keep increasing this number until literally everyone on Earth can participate in the same group video call, at which point it claims it will broadcast itself yodeling to celebrate the achievement.

Joining this update are Video Messages 2.0. With this update, Telegram says video messages are now shared in a high resolution and that viewers have the option of tapping these messages to expand them. When tapped, users will also be able to rewind and fast-forward these videos.

Other changes include the ability to record video while audio playback on your device continues, meaning you can, for example, record yourself singing along to a song. Video playback speed options are also now available with a range from 0.5x playback to 2x.

There's also the new ability to quickly copy a link for a specific video timestamp and share it with others, to share one's screen with sound in 1-on-1 video chats, the updated media editor makes it possible to draw fine details on an image, messages can now be set to auto-erase after a month, passcode animations have been updated, and there's even a two-factor authentication practice tool.