After 15 long years, WhatsApp finally lands on iPad | Technology News

Meta has announced the launch of a dedicated WhatsApp app for the iPad — a long-requested feature. The new app, released globally on Wednesday via the Apple App Store, offers the same functionality as the iPhone version of WhatsApp.

With the new iPad app, users can make video and audio calls with up to 32 people, share their screen, and switch between the front and rear cameras. Until now, using WhatsApp on an iPad required accessing the web version through a browser.

The app also allows users to keep everything in sync across their iPhone, Mac, and other devices. Personal messages, calls, and media remain protected with WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption.

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As a native iPad app, it takes full advantage of iPadOS multitasking features such as Stage Manager, Split View, and Slide Over. These features allow users to view multiple apps simultaneously, send messages while browsing the web, or research options for a group trip while on a call. On smartphones, users would typically have to switch away from WhatsApp to perform these kinds of tasks.

WhatsApp also notes that the new iPad app works seamlessly with the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil.

Festive offer

For years, Meta had not given a concrete answer as to why it hadn’t brought the world’s most popular messaging platform to the iPad — arguably the best-selling tablet on the market. WhatsApp debuted on the Apple App Store in 2009, six months before the iPad was introduced. Meta (formerly Facebook) acquired WhatsApp in 2014 but still never released a dedicated iPad app.

It wasn’t due to a lack of resources, but rather other factors that Meta never publicly addressed. Consumers had long wanted WhatsApp to run natively on the iPad. While the WhatsApp web client could be accessed on Apple’s tablet, users couldn’t use the front or rear cameras or make full-featured video calls.

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Sure, WhatsApp was always available on the iPhone, but that version couldn’t run on the iPad due to Apple’s restrictions on “telephony” apps. Now, with a dedicated iPad app, WhatsApp is optimised for the iPad’s larger screen, and users no longer need to rely on the web-based version of the platform.

WhatsApp has more than 3 billion monthly active users, with India being the largest market, with an estimated 535.8 million users.

Anuj Bhatia is a personal technology writer at indianexpress.com who has been covering smartphones, personal computers, gaming, apps, and lifestyle tech actively since 2011. He specialises in writing longer-form feature articles and explainers on trending tech topics. His unique interests encompass delving into vintage tech, retro gaming and composing in-depth narratives on the intersection of history, technology, and popular culture. He covers major international tech conferences and product launches from the world’s biggest and most valuable tech brands including Apple, Google and others. At the same time, he also extensively covers indie, home-grown tech startups. Prior to joining The Indian Express in late 2016, he served as a senior tech writer at My Mobile magazine and previously held roles as a reviewer and tech writer at Gizbot. Anuj holds a postgraduate degree from Banaras Hindu University. You can find Anuj on Linkedin.
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