Multi-device capability was recently touted by WhatsApp, and it has since begun to roll out to beta testers. You can use the same WhatsApp account on numerous devices with multi-device support without needing to have your phone connected to the internet. If you’re interested in using WhatsApp from each of your devices independently, continue reading to learn everything there is to know about WhatsApp’s multi-device capability. We will go over how to use WhatsApp on multiple devices, how to enable it, and how to see if you have access to the multi-device beta.
Use WhatsApp on Multiple Devices (2021)
As of the time this article was being written, WhatsApp was introducing multi-device beta compatibility for Android and iOS smartphones. It is a restricted release, so even if you are on a beta build, you might not always see the feature. Now that that is out of the way, let’s look at how to check if your WhatsApp account supports the multi-device feature and how to turn it on immediately.
What Is Multi-Device Support on WhatsApp and How it Works?
You can use your WhatsApp account simultaneously on your phone and up to four other devices thanks to WhatsApp’s multi-device capability. These include Facebook Portal, WhatsApp Web, WhatsApp Desktop for Windows, and WhatsApp Desktop for Mac. The nice part about this is that even if your phone loses its internet connection, you can still use WhatsApp on these devices. Currently, it is not possible to utilise the same WhatsApp account (or phone number) on two different phones.
It’s crucial to understand how multi-device support functions in order to allay privacy worries before we move on to the instructions for using a single WhatsApp account across various devices. In the end, privacy shouldn’t be sacrificed for convenience, especially in a private messaging app, right?
The WhatsApp app on your phone currently serves as the main device, and all other platforms, including the WhatsApp Web and Windows/Mac apps, rely on this connection to work. You must always keep your phone online in order to use WhatsApp Web or Desktop, for this reason. According to the present architecture, a message has the following life:
WhatsApp has updated its messaging app’s basic architecture to get around the restriction of needing an active phone. The company claims that it now employs a client-fanout strategy where each device has a unique identity key. Additionally, WhatsApp establishes a pairwise encrypted session during which the client encrypts the messages and sends them to all of the user’s connected devices.
According to WhatsApp, each message is independently encrypted using the pairwise encryption session that has been established with each device. Additionally, messages are not saved on the server once they have been delivered. For group communications, the firm uses a scalable sender key encryption method from the Signal Protocol. Here’s how a WhatsApp message functions with the new multi-device architecture:
How to Enroll in WhatsApp Multi-Device Beta
To try the multi-device feature at this time, you will require a WhatsApp beta build, and both the Android and iOS beta programmes are currently full. As a result, this is how to sign up for WhatsApp multi-device beta testing if you are already a member of WhatsApp’s beta programme:
1. Tap the vertical three-dot menu in the top right corner of WhatsApp after opening it. Select Linked devices from the menu that appears.
2. You will see a new Multi-device beta option here if your WhatsApp account has multi-device support. In order to enrol in WhatsApp’s multi-device beta programme, tap on it and select Join beta.
3. WhatsApp will now warn you that you will have to link your companion devices once again.Tap Continueto confirm your action, and well, you have successfully joined the multi-device beta. If you change your mind, you can always go back to the Linked devices settings page and leave the multi-device beta program.
Use Same WhatsApp Account on Multiple Devices
The time has come to link your devices since you registered for the multi-device beta. Follow these steps to do that:
1. Open the Linked devices screen in WhatsApp on your phone and open the WhatsApp Web or Desktop app on your PC. Once the QR code appears,tap on Link a deviceon your phone andscan the QR codeon your PC or Facebook portal device.
2. Similarly, you can link up to four devices at the same time. Here, I have linked three browsers and the WhatsApp Desktop app for Windows with my account, as you can see in the image below. Do keep in mind that theselinked devices will get disconnected if you don t use your phone for over 14 days.
3. If you no longer want to use WhatsApp on a specific device, you can tap on the target device from the Linked devices page and choose the Log out option. Alternatively, you can choose to log out from the device in question as well.
WhatsApp Multi-Device Beta: First Impressions
Based on my brief testing, WhatsApp s multi-device feature worked flawlessly across all of my linked devices. I could send messages, emojis, GIFs, voice notes, and make voice and video calls without having to connect my phone to the internet. The best part? All the linked devicesseamlessly synced the chat historywithout noticeable delay.
If I had to nitpick, one minor inconvenience I faced while using WhatsApp on multiple devices is that I couldn t access my starred stickers. As someone who excessively uses third-party stickers not available in the WhatsApp store, I was disappointed to know that multi-device beta doesn t sync my starred stickers. However, there s one workaround you could scroll through your chat history and forward those stickers as a new message. You will then see them in the recent stickers section and send them later. Not entirely convenient, but it works.
Speaking of chat history, you can t view the entire chat history across linked devices. I couldonly view up to three months of old conversations. Scrolling past that shows a warning, asking to check WhatsApp on my phone to view the complete chat history.
Another limitation is thatyou can t pin chats on WhatsApp Web or Desktop if you are using multi-device beta. That could be a major inconvenience for users who use pinned chats to quickly communicate with their team, save notes, send images across devices, or other use-cases. Apart from these, I would say WhatsApp s development team has done a phenomenal job with the multi-device feature.
Potential Privacy Concern with WhatsApp Multi-Device Feature
Now that WhatsApp Web and Desktop apps have multi-device support, I urge you to re-enable thatWhatsApp Web is currently activenotification if you had previously disabled it. I know, having a persistent notification might feel distracting to some, but WhatsApp Web has become fairly capable after the rollout of multi-device support. You may not immediately notice if someone is misusing your account unless you regularly check the Linked Devices page.
I tried sending some messages from WhatsApp Web and immediately deleted them using the Delete for me option. Since the sync works so well, it doesn t leave a trace on your phone, and unsuspecting users may not even immediately realize that their WhatsApp got compromised. The scope of this happening is limited, though. The malicious actor requires physical access to your phone, along with your PIN or fingerprint to be able to enroll a device and start a new multi-device session.
WhatsApp Multi-Device Limitations
Having said all that, here are the known limitations of WhatsApp s multi-device beta, asdetailedby WhatsApp:
- Checking Live location on linked devices
- Pinning chats on WhatsApp Web or Desktop
- Joining, viewing, and resetting group invites from WhatsApp Web and Desktop
- Contacting someone with an outdated WhatsApp version
- Calling from Portal or WhatsApp Desktop to linked devices that aren t enrolled in the multi-device beta
- Other WhatsApp accounts on your Portal won t work unless those accounts have joined the multi-device beta
- WhatsApp Business users can t edit business names or labels from WhatsApp Web or Desktop
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I Use the Same WhatsApp Account on Two Phones?
No, you can t use the same WhatsApp account (or phone number) on two phones. You could, however, visit WhatsApp web from your second phone. In your phone s browser, open WhatsApp web using desktop mode and scan the QR code to use WhatsApp from the browser on your second phone.
2. Can Someone See My WhatsApp Messages from Another Phone?
As long as someone didn t have physical access to your Android or iOS phone, and didn t log in to your account on WhatsApp Web, and turned off WhatsApp Web notification, no one can see your WhatsApp messages from another phone.
3. How Many Devices Can Be Connected to WhatsApp?
Apart from your primary phone, you canconnect a total of four devices to your WhatsApp account. These devices can be WhatsApp Web, Desktop, or Facebook Portal. You can t officially use WhatsApp with two phones right now.
4. Does WhatsApp Have Multi-Device Support?
WhatsApp is testing multi-device support in the beta channel on Android and iOS right now. You can use WhatsApp on multiple devices in the coming months.
5. How to Join WhatsApp Multi-Device Beta?
If you are enrolled in the WhatsApp beta program, you can access WhatsApp multi-device beta from the Linked devices page. We ve detailed the instructions to join WhatsApp multi-device beta above.
WhatsApp Multi-Device Support Explained
So, that s everything you need to know about using WhatsApp on multiple devices. We hope this cleared all your doubts regarding WhatsApp s multi-device support. If you have any more doubts, feel free to ask them in the comments section below. Will will try to help you out. And for more such WhatsApp tips, go through our article on thebest WhatsApp tips and tricks.
