WhatsApp Messenger is a mobile messaging app available for iPhone and other smartphones. WhatsApp uses your 3G or WiFi (when available) to send and receive text messages, pictures, audio notes, and video messages with friends and family. The default version of Whatsapp for iOS is available from the Apple iTunes store, but what about the others iOS desktop/Mac users? Is it possible to download and install Whatsapp on your Mac iOS laptop? Yes but…
A WhatsApp emulator for iOS – Mac through… Android!
It’s called BlueStacks and is available from summer 2012: Bluestacks App Player makes it possible to run Android apps on many operating systems such as pre-existing MAC iOS. Simply download and install this software from this page to have a valid Whatsapp version running on your Mac desktop computer. Once downloaded, this emulator can be installed and run as on your iPhone or smartphone. However, to download the Android version, you must create a valid Google account to download it from the Play sotre. As happens on iOS and Android mobile phones (but we should remembered that WhatsApp works also with Blackberry, Symbian, Nokia S40 and Windows Phone), the application must be validated by entering a valid mobile number.
Using Whatsapp application for iOS
MAC (iOS) users will notice that it isn’t exactly the same the same as other OSes. The Apple IOS will have its own set of menus, tips and tricks that can be completed on the IOS that is fairly different from the Android, Blackberry and Windows based OS systems. There are numerous tips that you should know when using the IOS version of Whatsapp to ensure that you get everything out of your Whatsapp application.
Disabling Your Last Seen Timestamp
On the application users are notified of the last time that you were on the application but sometimes a user wants to remain private. Using your IOS version of Whatsapp there is a way to hide this particular timestamp from being seen by others on the application.
- Go To Settings
- Tap on Chat Settings
- Tap Advanced
- Turn Last Seen Timestamp from On to Off
This disables the ability for other users to see when the last time you were on the application which allows you to have privacy and be hidden when using the application.
Backing Up Your Chats
Many users may use the application and accidentally delete a message that was important without the ability to retrieve the message. Backing up your chats will allow you the ability to never fully lose or permanently delete your chats. In your IOS version of Whatsapp there is a way to turn on this setting.
- Go To Settings
- Tap on Chat Settings
- Tap on Chat Back Up
- Tap on Back Up Now
This option will save all your chats to your SD card on your device to ensure that every message you are involved in will be saved.
Stop Whatsapp Images From Being Saved In Your Gallery
When receiving images on Whatsapp the pictures will automatically save into your gallery. Some people do not wish to have this option activated so there is a way to turn this off.
- Go To Your Device Settings
- Go To Privacy
- Slide Whatsapp from Green to White to disable
Again, regarding iOS, what about installing WhatsApp on the latest beta of iOS 8? Well, it’s almost impossible. The latest Beta 4 of the Apple operating system was released only Monday but many people are still reporting problems on this messaging app, as it happened before in the previous three Betas released in the past. WhatsApp on iOS 4 Beta 8 doesn’t work very well. The application crashes, the conversations’ history can be lost and more generally there are delays in receiving and sending messages to and from contacts and friends.
A solution to the problem? For now, no, and I do not think it will be available before a final release of the firmware in September. The incompatibility also in the latest beta of iOS 8 will perhaps not be eliminated in any of the future provisional firmware releases. WhatsApp developers will probably need to adapt their application of the operating system that will be released within two months.
In the past I criticized the bugs of iOS WhatsApp and the work of Apple, assuming that iMessage was the root of these problems. Surely the two messaging applications (Whatsapp and iMessage) are very similar, and promote the use of Apple software rather than those of competitors (like others Facebook app). Certainly WhatsApp will work perfectly on iOS released in September, but in the meantime for all those who are testing this Beta of the new firmware, iMessage it’s the only app working correctly !