WhatsApp is rolling out a beta test that will bring multi-device capability to the platform allowing users to access WhatsApp to four other non-phone devices simultaneously.
Very excited to be launching a beta of our new multi-device capability for @WhatsApp. Now you can use our desktop or web experiences even when your phone isn’t active and connected to the internet. All secured with end-to-end encryption.
Learn more: https://t.co/AnFu4Qh6Hd
— Will Cathcart (@wcathcart) July 14, 2021
The new update will enable WhatsApp users for the first time to use the service on up to four non-phone devices without having the registered phone switched on or otherwise connected to the internet.
In a statement, the Facebook-owned firm said that by requiring the phone to perform all operations, companion devices are slower and frequently get disconnected — especially when the phone has a poor connection, its battery is running low, or the application process gets killed by the phone’s OS.
“The new WhatsApp multi-device architecture removes these hurdles, no longer requiring a smartphone to be the source of truth while still keeping user data seamlessly and securely synchronized and private. Under the new system, the phone will no longer be the primary device and the user data will remain “seamlessly and securely synchronized and private,” according to Whatsapp.
The Company doesn’t have a specific date for when it plans to roll out this feature to all users.
