How to use WhatsApp on a Laptop or Desktop Computer using WhatsApp Web

I personally hate WhatsApp.

I blame it for turning my workmates at Advantage Call Center into smartphone-obsessed Mobile Social Media Zombies! Yes, WhatsApp also has video calling as per my blog article entitled “How WhatsApp Video Calling matches Messenger and Beats Snapchat and Skype”.  

According to WhatsApp's support page, you can WhatsApp product (Web or desktop app) if you have one of the following smartphones:

1.      Android

2.      iPhone 8.1+

3.      Windows Phone 8.0 and 8.1

4.      Nokia S60, Nokia S40 EVO

5.      BlackBerry and BlackBerry 10

Typing on this mobile social media platform makes you seem dumb, as the spellchecker does such a poor job of correcting your typos. So I was quite pleased to learn that WhatsApp has a website version for us typists out there!

So how does you enable the WhatsApp Web on your Laptop or Desktop computer?

How to use WhatsApp Web – Mirror, mirror on your Desktop Computer

Good to note that isn't a bypass of WhatsApp; you still need to have your smartphone and you need to be accessing WhatsApp via Wi-Fi, allowing the WhatsApp Web or App to mirror your smartphone.

Still it’s a great way to bypass censors in a country that may be blocking WhatsApp, as argued in my blog article entitled “How WhatsApp Desktop App indicates Right to Privacy and Free Speech censored at Rio 2016 Olympics”. 

So here's how you use WhatsApp Web:

1.      Load up Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Safari or Edge browser

2.      Visit the website https://web.WhatsApp.com/

3.      A QR code will appear on the screen

4.      Follow the instructions and scan the QR Code using WhatsApp on your smartphone

Your WhatsApp messages on your phone will start appearing in the browser. You can disconnect the Wi-Fi connection for your phone but why would you? It’s free and you can save on using mobile data. Always remember to log out using the three dot menu, otherwise persons coming after you can log in and read all your personal chats.

Still, if you forgot to do so, you can log out all active sessions by scanning the same QR code to log out all active sessions and log in a new one. Sharing is caring so share this interesting WhatsApp Web tip with your friends.