WhatsApp Messenger plans to introduce improvements to voice messages in the coming weeks, including the ability to listen to them while reading other chats and play messages at 1.5 or 2 times speed.

WhatsApp plans to add the ability to pause and resume recording so that users do not have to leave long periods of silence in the recording. You can also listen to the message before sending it to make sure the recording is correct.

There will be only a small aesthetic improvement in the voice messaging interface. Instead of displaying the recording progress bar, WhatsApp will use a waveform of the actual message. In addition, the messenger will be able to remember which part of the recording the user stopped playing, and will allow starting it again from that point.

These improvements are likely to be widely used – WhatsApp says users send an average of 7 billion voice chats a day.