WhatsApp Web & Desktop: When Will Voice & Video Calls Come To PCs & Macs?
It looks like voice and video calling may finally be coming to the WhatsApp Web and Desktop apps. The functionalities have been part of the WhatsApp mobile app for a number of years. The addition of voice and video calling to the web and desktop apps will allow them to better compete with the likes of Facebook Messenger and Zoom.
Although WhatsApp is primarily a mobile messaging app for many people, It has been continuously developed with new features since it was bought by Facebook in 2014. The WhatsApp Web version was launched in 2015 and the WhatsApp Desktop app, which is much the same as the web version, was added the following year. This made it more convenient for people using computers to use and positioned it more as an all-purpose messaging service than just one for mobile devices.
The voice calling and video calling functionalities of the mobile app were also added in 2015 and 2016, respectively, further expanding WhatsApp's use as a communications tool. Until now, though, these features hadn't been added to the web and desktop versions, although WABetaInfo has suggested they were being worked on for a couple of years. The same site is now reporting that voice and video calling functionalities are available for some beta users.
WABetaInfo says that some WhatsApp Desktop beta users are now seeing voice and video call buttons in their chat headers alongside the search and drop-down menu buttons, as well as pop-out windows for accepting or rejecting calls and for muting audio, turning video on or off, and ending calls. It says that beta test numbers are still very low but that they are increasing daily. It also suggests that WhatsApp Desktop will get priority over WhatsApp Web for the beta roll-out. For a public roll-out, it's likely that WhatsApp might release the features at the same time on both platforms, as it has done in the past.
When that is likely to be, of course, is not confirmed. Beta testing generally means features are close to launch but can also throw up problems that need addressing. WABetaInfo says the features are being rolled out slowly in beta, but that all users could see them within a matter of weeks. What is clear is that voice and video call functionalities will be available via WhatsApp Web and Desktop before too long, continuing a productive period for WhatsApp's development with the recent launches of Disappearing Messages and WhatsApp Carts.
Source: WABetaInfo