To hate WhatsApp voice notes?

[MattCauthon]

I don't mind a quick one because someone is running to meet you and wants to let you know they are on the way or whatever. But the 2-10 minute ones from SIL drive me mad. Long ramble ones. Either call me to discuss or summarise in a quick text. I am lucky that she is the only one. Dh has a couple.of colleagues who do it on their team whatsapp for scheduling and if drives him.mad too.

It's just so entitled. Like I have 4 minutes to listen to it all?! Argh!!! (And yes, I concede that this is probably aggravated by ongoing issues of SIL being kind and generous on one hand but hugely self absorbed and selfish on the other (kind and generous... on her terms!)

I hate them too. To me, whatsapp is for written messaging. If someone sends me a voice message, I generally don’t bother listening to it 😂

I will listen to a voice mail if it’s sent by someone under six years old or with more than two legs

I don't listen to them either, especially in group chats. If I'm flicking through my WhatsApp I don't want to have to track down my headphones or listen through speakers, and if it is something I need to reference later I want to be able to glance at it, not wonder which message that was in and what was relevant.

I assumed for ages they were just people doing the equivalent of pocket calling!

I absolutely hate them but found out you can transcribe them into a message so I do that now so don’t have to listen to them!

"Hi Jane, could you send that again as a text? Thanks"

Every time.

Selfish fuckers that use voice notes of any length IMO.

I'm not a fan of them. Mostly because they usually come through when I can't listen and it drives me nuts wondering what they've said. Just send a message!

That said, my friend who uses voice note the most is dyslexic so it works best for her. She gets a pass. And she rarely goes over 2-3 min.

But from colleagues? Yeah, I'm not listening to that.

Ooh how do you do that? Please share.
I hate them too.

On my family WhatsApp group we use them a lot, usually for slightly longer, chattier messages (which invariably end with "sorry for rambling on"

I like this function because I am too crap at phone typing for anything longer than a quick sentence. And because it is nice to hear one another

We have a nice relaxed convention that no one has to feel bad about not picking up every message. And if anyone felt they didn't have time to listen, or couldn't listen bcs in public, they can just ask for a bare-bones text version. Or ignore it altogether. All good.

I loooooove voice notes. Sometimes I'm too tired to type, or sometimes it's easier for me to get my thoughts out on a voice note rather than on a call (I don't know why this is the case, though). Sometimes I just don't want to call, but I just need to hear my partner's voice to calm me down so I ask him to send a voice note

Oh no, I love them! I like hearing the other person’s voice, it feels much more personal than a text! I listen to them when I’m doing other things, it’s not like it takes up any time, in fact reading a message and then typing one back is more time consuming and restrictive than voice-noting, in my opinion!

Totally with you. As a society I thought we'd progressed beyond voicemail - which I'd disabled on every phone I'd had for a decade and a half anyway - only to find it worming its way in through the back door again. And I can't disable it on Whatsapp!

I just make it clear to most people I know that I don't listen to voicenotes and if they want to actually convey information to me that has to be done through a text medium.

Speed them up! She'll sound like a chipmunk but at least you don't have to listen to her for 4 minutes 🙃

Mayve you'll love those voice notes when that person's gone (or not if you hate the person!).

Mum died recently and ive searched through her WhatsApp for voice notes, unfortunately all I found was when I was trying to teach her how to use it and its just me saying "if you press this button it records your voice, your fingers dont have to tuoe" and her saying huh huh in the background!

WTF? It takes so much more time to listen to a voicenote than to read the equivalent amount of writing. And that's before you factor in having to stop/pause whatever you're already listening to, which is already annoying - if I'm listening to music or a podcast I don't actually want to stop midway through.

I prefer them to voicemail or email. At least you can scroll back to hear something again if you need to without having to listen to the whole message and I can put my phone down and do other things whilst I'm listening.

I quite like a voice note. I use them specifically with one friend who’s dyslexic, so written messages tend to be a chore for him, and another whose daughter is going through gruelling cancer treatment. I always say to her that I am just checking in, don’t expect her to reply, but was thinking of her as I was walking to work or whatever - somehow it feels more personal but also less pressure to respond during a terrible, stressful time.

Yet another facet of modern life where people are doing the thing that's easiest for them, not caring it is worse for people on the receiving end.

I have read the posts from people who prefer it, but I don't. Bah humbug.

I treat them the way I do voicemail.

Delete without listening.

People who like them - when and how are you listening to them?

My main problem with them is that I can read a message almost any time but I very often don’t have the opportunity to listen to voice notes.

So I feel it’s something that is easier for the sender but not necessarily considerate of the recipient.

Someone I know does this and it does grate.

They usually enter the conversation with a couple of written messages and then proceed to continue with voice notes, which are between 1-3 minutes long each time.

I’m usually at work so unable to listen to them so it ends the conversation there until I get home and can properly listen. I have said before that I can’t listen to them but they still continue and reply back with a voice note. Sometimes I am petty and don’t even reply when I get home and have listened to it i leave it to the next day instead.

I’m afraid i’m guilty of WhatsApp voice notes but i am happy to receive them also. Our DD is currently on a uni year abroad and it’s a very helpful way to communicate. In fairness to myself, i tend to use them when the message is relatively complex and voice helps for any nuance.

I also don’t intend or assume urgency (for urgency, i would call), so assume people will listen when they can and i listen when i can. I’m in my 50s which may have a bearing on how i use WhatsApp.

Oh god, I can’t stand them. Fuck off. It’s so much quicker to read stuff than listen plus I can also read them without having to scrabble for headphones etc if someone sends one when I’m in public. Thankfully most people I know don’t use them

I once had someone send a 20 minute voice note.

I mean what on earth just call me?? Sometimes feel like its for people who just want to talk at you rather than have a conversation.
I don't want to listen to anyone ramble on, at least allow me the chance to say 'uh huh'.

But you would have to stop what you’re doing to reply to a text too? And you have to take your eyes off what you’re doing to read, but not while listening.

I mean I get that with short messages then a text is easier and quicker. But for long ones that are about some personal news or asking for opinions and require thought, I find writing responses to those takes me ages, whereas a voicenote is quite the opposite!
Maybe it’s just a case of choosing the right type of message for the right situation?

I like them. I usually put them on 1.5 speed but I listen to them when I'm putting on makeup or doing my hair, unloading the dishwasher, etc