Multi-device management changes radically with the latest version of WhatsApp for Android, not yet available to the general public: here’s what we can expect and when
In mid-September 2021 WhatsApp launched in beta the feature called “Multi-device”, which is used to use the app from multiple devices simultaneously, for up to 4 devices connected to the same account. Everyone can join the beta program, accepting a few imperfections and some limits still present, and start using WhatsApp simultaneously from smartphones, tablets, computers.
Among the limits to be accepted, two are still particularly binding: you must always have your smartphone online, otherwise other devices won’t be able to connect to your WhatsApp account, and you can’t use the same account with two phones. When you try to connect a second phone, in fact, the first one is automatically disconnected from the account. In short, multi-device WhatsApp is already usable but still not perfect. But it’s about to get better: in the latest beta version of WhatsApp for Android, in fact, there’s a new feature that users have been waiting for, which allows you to overcome the first limitation described.
WhatsApp without a phone
The limitation is precisely that it’s impossible to use WhatsApp multi-device without a smartphone that acts as the center of the whole system.
In the latest version of the WhatsApp Android app, not available to the general public but only to beta testers, in the settings section to enable multi-device it is clearly said “Now you can use WhatsApp without having your phone online”.
This means being able to use WhatsApp from one of the other 3 devices without the main smartphone necessarily having to be connected to the Internet. In perspective, then, we will be able to use multi-device even if the phone is off, perhaps because it has downloaded.
WhatsApp multi-device: what’s still missing
The novelty just described is not already available for everyone, but it will be soon. It is clear from the fact that with the new version of the WhatsApp app for Android is also explained that, once you enter the beta program of multi-device, you can no longer exit (at the moment you can enter and exit whenever you want).
We are moving towards the final version of this feature, then, which will be precisely possible to use even when the phone is turned off. What is still missing, however, is the ability to use the same WhatsApp account from two phones at the same time.
This will be the real “killer feature” that everyone is waiting for and that, when released, will make WhatsApp much more convenient to use for those who have two phones, perhaps one Android and one iPhone.