WhatsApp to Roll Out Multi-Device Support, Hints at Future iPad App
In an interview with WABetaInfo, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that the popular messaging app will soon be rolling out multi-device capability, allowing users to use their WhatsApp account on up to four different linked devices even when their main smartphone is not connected to the internet.
According to Zuckerberg, Facebook has faced "a big technical challenge" in getting "all your messages and content to sync properly across devices even when your phone battery dies." However, Zuckerberg says that Facebook, which owns WhatsApp, has found "an elegant" solution to the issue and that "it'll be the best solution out there." In addition, WhatsApp head Will Cathcart says that multi-device support will be rolling out in a public beta.
Specifically targeting the prospect of a future native iPad app for WhatsApp, Cathcart says that the company would "love to support" the iPad and hints that the roll-out of multi-device support will "make it possible for us to build things like that."
Other features confirmed to be coming soon to WhatsApp include "disappearing mode," which will turn on disappearing messages for all chat threads, making users WhatsApp accounts "ephemeral," according to Zuckerberg. Additionally, Zuckerberg confirmed that WhatsApp will soon roll out "view once" mode for photos and videos, where similar to Snapchat and Instagram, users will only be able to view received content once.
Related Stories
WhatsApp is working on an app for iPadOS, and thanks to Mac Catalyst, an app for macOS too, according to WABetaInfo.
WhatsApp's rumored app for iPad will be a Catalyst app, enabling it to run seamlessly on macOS. This effectively allows the same app to share code while running on separate platforms.
The new WhatsApp app for macOS apparently looks very similar to the app for iPadOS,...
WhatsApp has made a privacy change to prevent people on the messaging platform from viewing the "Last Seen" status of users whom they have never chatted with, according to the latest report from independent feature specialist WABetaInfo.
As regular WhatsApp users will know, the "Last Seen" status of a contact sits atop the conversation thread, informing you when that contact last opened the...
WhatsApp's plan to bring iMessage-style message reactions to the massively popular chat platform appears to be entering its final stages, based on new screenshots shared by WABetaInfo.
WhatsApp has been working on message reactions – or "Tapbacks" in Apple Messages parlance – for some time, with evidence of their development first coming to light last summer. The feature gives...
Regulators in Germany are seeking to bar Facebook from collecting user data from its subsidiary, WhatsApp (via Bloomberg).
The Hamburg regulator is looking to achieve an "immediately enforceable order" against Facebook by May 15, due to concerns that WhatsApp's privacy policy changes could lead to the unlawful use of user data for marketing and advertising purposes. Data Commissioner...
WhatsApp has launched a cryptocurrency payment feature for a small number of users in the United States, thanks to Novi integration, a digital wallet owned by Facebook (now Meta).
The pilot program lets users of the encrypted messaging app send and receive money "instantly, securely, and with no fees" using the Paxos Dollar (USPD) stablecoin, whose value is linked to the US dollar.
The...
WhatsApp has rolled out a new feature to users of its beta app that adds the ability to continue listening to a voice message after you've exited the chat thread it was received in.
WhatsApp has been working on a global voice note player for some time to let users listen to voice messages in the background while navigating around the app. Currently, if you play a voice note and then exit ...
WhatsApp is testing a helpful new feature on iOS that displays profile pictures in system notifications when users receive new messages from chats and groups.
Image credit: WABetaInfo First spotted by app specialist WABetaInfo, the first new feature for the platform in 2022 uses APIs in iOS 15 to add the WhatsApp profile images to notifications in top-screen banners and in the Notification...
WhatsApp has introduced a new call feature to its platform that allows you to jump into an end-to-end encrypted group call even after it has started.
Previously it was only possible to join a group call in WhatsApp when the call was first made and the phone was ringing, which meant if you missed the initial notification and the group call had started, you were effectively locked out of...
Popular Stories
Earlier today, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claimed iPhone 14 Pro models will be more expensive than iPhone 13 Pro models. Kuo did not reveal exact pricing, but he said that the average selling price of all four iPhone 14 models will increase by about 15% overall.
While higher prices would be disappointing for customers, it is possible the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will offer increased...
Apple plans to increase the prices of iPhone 14 Pro models compared to iPhone 13 Pro models, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Kuo did not reveal exact pricing for the iPhone 14 Pro models. However, in a tweet today, he estimated that the average selling price of the iPhone 14 lineup as a whole will increase by about 15% compared to the iPhone 13 lineup.
In the United States, the iPhone...
Wednesday August 10, 2022 4:08 am PDT by
Sami FathiThe launch of the new iPhone 14 is just a few weeks away, meaning millions of iPhone customers will soon upgrade their existing iPhone or perhaps get an iPhone for the first time. Exclusive MacRumors iPhone 14 Pro renders by graphic designer Ian Zelbo Whether upgrading from an older model or this is your first iPhone, we've rounded up a few tips to help you prepare for the next flagship...
In the latest iOS 16 beta, Apple has updated the status bar battery icon on iPhones with Face ID to display the exact percentage remaining rather than just a visual representation of battery level, and while the change has been largely welcomed, some users are unhappy with the way it has been implemented.
In iOS 15 and earlier, battery percent has not been present on iPhones that have...
Apple has been granted a patent for a temperature sensor suitable for the Apple Watch, just weeks before the company is expected to unveil the Apple Watch Series 8 with body temperature sensing capabilities.
The newly granted patent, spotted by MyHealthyApple, was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and is titled "Temperature gradient sensing in electronic devices."...
Top Rated Comments
Now if only Apple announce cross platform iMessage at WWDC...
Of course @justperry doesn't believe. He'd much rather believe some internet rando who uses juvenile terminology like whatstrash and scumbook. ;)
Facebook's data vacuum is infamously prodigious. We all know it. Doesn't mean we have to resort to petty epithets.