Rumor: WhatsApp is working on desktop programs for Windows and OS X

WhatsApp is said to be working on a desktop client for Windows and OS X. At the moment, WhatsApp can only be used on desktops with a web version. Many users have been asking for a desktop client for the chat program for years.

The Twitter account WABetaInfo reports that the clients are coming and @turinconiphone responded with a screenshot that seems to confirm the information. The screenshot comes from a program in which volunteers translate texts for WhatsApp. It lists Download for Mac OS X and Download for Windows as options, on something that should become a new download page.

WhatsApp can currently only be used via the smartphone and via the web version in the browser. It is unknown whether the desktop clients, like the web version, would require the smartphone to be online. Competitor Telegram, among others, has had a desktop client that does not require this for some time, but Telegram stores messages on its own servers, where WhatsApp does not.

The web version of WhatsApp first came online in January last year. It is unknown if and when the software for OS X and Windows should be released.