Now use WhatsApp on five devices simultaneously with Multi-Device support: Here’s how

WhatsApp’s Multi-Device support is now out of beta. The “Linked Devices” feature as it is called in the settings section of WhatsApp was in the beta or testing mode till now. Users had to join the beta programme to try out the feature. Interestingly, WhatsApp had revealed earlier that since it introduced the beta feature, it had “seen an increase in people accessing” the service directly through their web browser.
The multi-device feature lets users access WhatsApp on four other devices, such as their laptops or desktops via WhatsApp Web, excluding their primary phone, without worrying about internet connectivity on the main phone. In short, they are not dependent on their primary phone in order to continue using WhatsApp Web. However, if you don’t use your phone for over 14 days, the linked devices will be disconnected. With the feature, users will be able to access WhatsApp on a total of five devices simultaneously.

Here’s how multi-device support works on WhatsApp:

Open web.whatsapp.com on a desktop or laptop browser. Keep in mind that WhatsApp has also launched a Code Verify extension to let users check the authenticity of the code they are scanning. Read more details here.
On an Android device, tap the three-dot menu and you should see ‘Linked Devices’ as an option. On iOS, ‘Linked Devices’ is available in settings.
Go to Linked Devices. It will ask you to scan a code. Scan the code reflected on web.whatsapp.com. Make sure both the phone and laptop have access to a stable internet connection.
Once the code is scanned, it will take a few minutes and WhatsApp Web will work on your laptop or desktop. The difference is now that this can function on its own without depending on your phone.

WhatsApp also said the moment you link your phone to another device, the device “sends an end-to-end encrypted copy of your most recent message hory to your newly linked device.”

All messages are stored locally on this. However, not all messages are synced to WhatsApp Web or Desktop. Sometimes, WhatsApp might tell you to go to your phone to see the full message hory. WhatsApp has also led out a FAQ page highlighting which features are not supported in the ‘Linked Devices’ feature.
These features are:

Clearing or deleting chats on linked devices if the primary device is an iPhone.
Messaging or calling someone using a very old version of WhatsApp on their phone. Also, tablets are not supported.
Ability to see live location on linked devices.
Creating and viewing broadcast ls on linked devices.
Sending messages with link previews from WhatsApp Web.

If you are not able to see the linked devices on your iOS or Android device, please make sure you have updated to the latest version of the app from the respective store. Restart WhatsApp once you have updated and the new feature should reflect.