A mobile, a phone number, an account. This is how WhatsApp has always been since its premiere. And if you want to have two WhatsApp accounts on the same terminal, it is possible using two SIM cards -or a virtual e-Sim-, which again points out that the messaging application can only be used at the same time on a single device … Better said: I could.
WhatsApp Multi-device
Cn the function WhatsApp multi-device can link up to 4 devices to one account without the need for an active internet connection on the main device -that is, you do not have to have your mobile on to use your WhatsApp on another device. But yes at the time of linking the devices, since in this way the chats and account data can be transferred to the other computers. LConversations remain end-to-end encrypted.
All messages will continue to have end-to-end encryption, something guaranteed by Facebook, which is a breakthrough since you can use your account on 4 devices simultaneously registered with the same phone number and able to receive messages each on their own.
Send WhatsApps even without battery on the mobile
With this new feature, you can now use your WhatsApp even if the phone battery is dead or the terminal off, as they have pointed out since the official Facebook blog. Each complementary device will connect to your WhatsApp account independently, keeping the same level of privacy and security through end-to-end encryption that WhatsApp users expect.
The most important thing is that “We have developed new technologies to maintain end-to-end encryption and, at the same time, achieve synchronization of your data – such as contact names, chat files, starred messages and much more – across all devices. To get it, we had to rethink the architecture of WhatsApp and design new systems that allow for an independent experience on multiple devices, while preserving privacy and end-to-end encryption. ”
Take smartphones out of the equation
The current WhatsApp experience for complementary devices on the web, macOS, Windows and Portal uses a smartphone app as the main device, which makes the phone the source of truth for all user data and the only device capable of encrypting data. end-to-end messages for another user, initiate calls, etc. Complementary devices “Maintain a persistent secure connection to the phone and they just reflect their content on their own user interface ”.
The new multi-device architecture of WhatsApp removes these obstacles as it does not require a smartphone to be the source of truth, while keeping user data in sync and private safely and seamlessly.
Released on WhatsApp Beta
The new function started unfold last week, but only for “specific testers of the WhatsApp beta for Android and iOS“, so if you don’t use WhatsApp Beta, if you only use the normal version of the app, at the moment you won’t be able to try this option, but being in beta it is a matter of it being available for the final version of the app shortly.
If you use WhatsApp Beta and want to find out if you are one of the lucky users chosen for the bulk test, you just have to:
1- Open WhatsApp Web / Desktop Settings from your iPhone or Android device (WhatsApp may change the name to Linked Devices in the meantime, but this does not mean you have received the function)
2- If the function is activated for your WhatsApp account, you will see a new row called “Beta multidispositivo”.
When some users doubt whether our chats are stored in the WhatsApp / Facebook cloud using the multi-device, the answer is no: WhatsApp does not store your messages after they are delivered, but when someone sends you a message, it is delivered to all your paired devices. When you create a new session, your chat history is transferred from your phone to the paired device, and this process is encrypted. When the process is complete, all keys are erased from the new paired device, and the messages are saved to the local database.
Your messages, calls, and status updates remain end-to-end encrypted, even if you join the cross-device beta program.
At the moment, only on a mobile
When in doubt of more than one right now, we answer it: We cannot use the WhatsApp account on several mobiles at the same time, but on a single terminal, at least for now. According to WABetaInfo: “We already said that WhatsApp will launch the first version of the multi-device beta only for WhatsApp Web, WhatsApp Desktop and Portal. This means that at first you will not be able to link a mobile phone like another iPhone or Android, but this function is exclusive for those platforms “. WhatsApp also confirms in a screenshot that the first multi-device version will only be compatible with those devices.
But … will the possibility of linking a second mobile phone be available in a future update? It must be said that WhatsApp was also working on a logout option that appears only on linked devices, so “it is really possible to imagine that we will also be able to link mobile devices, in the future ”.
But not to begin with, since this first version of multi-device it only allows WhatsApp Web, WhatsApp Desktop and Portal to work without an active internet connection on the phone.
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