WhatsApp Working on App for iPadOS and macOS Using Mac Catalyst

[MacRumors]

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, featuring the same basic interface, but there are some minor UI changes to accommodate a desktop experience. Presumably, this new Mac app will replace the existing macOS WhatsApp app and no longer rely on a connected smartphone.

The new apps will be supported by 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. WABetaInfo said that WhatsApp will enable support for macOS at a later date, suggesting that the iPad app may be released first.

Article Link: WhatsApp Working on App for iPadOS and macOS Using Mac Catalyst

 

[Kylo83]

How long does it take years

 

[lysingur]

Isn't there already a WhatsApp app for macOS?

‎WhatsApp Desktop

‎With WhatsApp on the desktop, you can seamlessly sync all of your chats to your computer so that you can chat on whatever device is most convenient for you.

apps.apple.com

 

[svish]

Finally. Took a long time. But still we don't know when it will be actually be available to download

 

[Mockletoy]

Isn't there already a WhatsApp app for macOS?

‎WhatsApp Desktop

‎With WhatsApp on the desktop, you can seamlessly sync all of your chats to your computer so that you can chat on whatever device is most convenient for you.

apps.apple.com

That was always more of a companion app. Until quite recently it couldn’t actually do anything but basically mirror messages from your phone, which it had to be connected to at all times.

Just in the last little while they started a beta test of letting the app actually connect to the WhatsApp servers and do stuff on its own.

 

[Kylo83]

WhatsApp seem to have things in beta for years

 

[Havoc035]

Not a big Meta fan at all. But I have to hand it to them, using Catalyst to build the mac app is way better than having it based on Electron.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

An App for a Mac and iPad will come in very handy.

Hopefully, it doesn’t take too long.

 

[nebulosan]

Not a big Meta fan at all. But I have to hand it to them, using Catalyst to build the mac app is way better than having it based on Electron.

I also read that they are ditching Electron in their Facebook Messenger desktop app in favor of an AppKit based one.

Even if one is not a user of FB/WhatsApp, this is good news since other developers can look at what tools and frameworks big companies like Facebook choose.

 

[MrGunnyPT]

Finally, I updated to the new one but it's still using rosetta.

Look at this amount of memory...

So yes please hurry up.

 

[MrGunnyPT]

I also read that they are ditching Electron in their Facebook Messenger desktop app in favor of an AppKit based one.

Even if one is not a user of FB/WhatsApp, this is good news since other developers can look at what tools and frameworks big companies like Facebook choose.

Could you share this news? I'm interested as FB Messenger is part of my country "social apps" and the current rosetta one is an absolutely crappy app.

 

[Wilburx3]

Anything in the Facebook umbrella must be destroyed.

 

[nebulosan]

Could you share this news? I'm interested as FB Messenger is part of my country "social apps" and the current rosetta one is an absolutely crappy app.

It was from these tweets from a reliable leaker:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1454924913106722820

So he claims he got a non-Electron version when downloading it directly from the web. I tried it myself but just got the regular Electron version. It was a higher version number than the one in Mac App Store (97 vs 96) but still, this was an old, crappy app from April. So the above leaker probably just got lucky that Facebook by mistake pushed a still-in-progress version as a stable one.

 

[johannnn]

And the watch? I need an app for the watch.

 

[Steve121178]

Anything in the Facebook umbrella must be destroyed.

Yeah, but WhatsApp is *the* standard for social communication these days, so even I had to cave in and join it eventually.

The app works just fine. MacOS version is a bit clunky but opting in to the Beta means you don't need to pair directly with your phone anymore.

An iPad app is something that should have been released years ago. Only those idiots at Meta know why it's taken thing long to do something so basic.

 

[orbital~debris]

Yeah, but WhatsApp is *the* standard for social communication these days, so even I had to cave in and join it eventually.

The app works just fine. MacOS version is a bit clunky but opting in to the Beta means you don't need to pair directly with your phone anymore.

An iPad app is something that should have been released years ago. Only those idiots at Meta know why it's taken thing long to do something so basic.

I declined and chose Signal instead.

The more people who do this and ask others to follow suit, the weaker Meta becomes.

 

[orbital~debris]

Talking of Signal, I hope this spurs them into creating a better ‘Signal Desktop’ macOS app (with more features, better integration with the OS, fuller menus, proper preferences window etc.) that can also go into the Mac App Store

 

[huge_apple_fangirl]

Hmm, between this and Amazon Prime, could Catalyst finally be taking off? Would be nice if that was the case.

 

[GumaRodak]

Isnt that a FB spyware?

 

[Rand0mUserNam3]

Facebook/Meta products = a big nope.

Signal is the wiser messaging choice, for when iMessage or plain old SMS isn’t an option.

 

[Havoc035]

Talking of Signal, I hope this spurs them into creating a better ‘Signal Desktop’ macOS app (with more features, better integration with the OS, fuller menus, proper preferences window etc.) that can also go into the Mac App Store

And also not based on Electron.

 

[macrumorsuserqc]

It was from these tweets from a reliable leaker:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1454924913106722820

So he claims he got a non-Electron version when downloading it directly from the web. I tried it myself but just got the regular Electron version. It was a higher version number than the one in Mac App Store (97 vs 96) but still, this was an old, crappy app from April. So the above leaker probably just got lucky that Facebook by mistake pushed a still-in-progress version as a stable one.

Well your message got me curious... so I went to Messenger.com, clicked "DESKTOP APP" then "Download for macOS" on the top right... and I got version 130! It is indeed not Electron anymore, but it's still running on Rosetta

Here's the link to download:

https://scontent-yyz1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2270-6/10000000_64718545917909639_6423640615014281609_n.dmg/Messenger.130.0.0.7.115.dmg?_nc_cat=109&ccb=1-5&_nc_sid=435822&_nc_ohc=V6_mxr38bmAAX-LhYAR&_nc_ht=scontent-yyz1-1.xx&oh=001d275fde9a69a7f0fc2a462461d065&oe=619835FC&dl=1

 

[Greenmeenie]

I’v never used Whats App & don’t have plans to.

 

[MrGunnyPT]

It was from these tweets from a reliable leaker:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1454924913106722820

So he claims he got a non-Electron version when downloading it directly from the web. I tried it myself but just got the regular Electron version. It was a higher version number than the one in Mac App Store (97 vs 96) but still, this was an old, crappy app from April. So the above leaker probably just got lucky that Facebook by mistake pushed a still-in-progress version as a stable one.

I just got the one from the webite and it shows version 130.

It seems to use less memory as well.

 

[Steve121178]

I declined and chose Signal instead.

The more people who do this and ask others to follow suit, the weaker Meta becomes.

There's 2 billion users on WhatsApp, no ones moving away from it. Just how it is.

I tried to get friends and family to use Telegram (my preference) & Signal, but WhatsApp is literally the #1 app most people want and need. No one's interested in anything else.

Everyone in my family has an iPhone so it's bizarre that no one uses iMessage, but they have their social groups firmly established in WhatsApp and no one's going to migrate away from it.

iMessage would have had a shot at being a proper competitor if it was available on Android from day 1, but it wasn't.