whatsapp

Last week we reported WhatsApp had disappeared from view on the Windows Phone Marketplace (it was actually set to private), and were awaiting official clarification on the matter. Turns out, according to a report over at MonWindowsPhone, the app has a serious security flaw, which requires the team to pull the app and look into the problem. An update is well on its way.

The app enables Windows Phone owners to send messages to other devices and is available for multiple platforms. German website ComputerBild reported that an Android app, called WhatsAppSniffer, allowed users to access messages sent using WhatsApp on a WiFi network. The developers of the popular messaging service are patching the app due to it sending  messages via XMP protocol and in plain text.

We'll keep you posted and will announce when the app is available on the Marketplace with the patch bundled in an update for existing users. In the meantime, you can checkout some early images of the Windows Phone 8 version of WhatsApp.

Update: We've received word from a WhatsApp employee stating the following in an email,

"This has nothing to do with security. Please don't spread mis-information."

Take it as you will. We'll look forward to more information and possible clarification. Until then, WhatsApp is not available until the promised update is released to the Marketplace.

via: MonWindowsPhone

Many Windows Phone owners noticed this morning they could no longer see WhatsApp, the popular messaging service, in the Marketplace. WhatsApp was bumped to version 2.0 back in May earlier this year and we can't think of a reason why it would vanish from view without prior warning - though we've almost grown used to this occurring with many other apps disappearing.

We've reached out to the WhatsApp team and will update this article accordingly. Of course, in the meantime there are plenty of alternative apps on the Marketplace, Kik being a popular alternative. Should you already have the app installed, fear not as the service works as one would expect. As for those who don't and wish to download it, we'll hopefully have more information for you soon.

Update: The app has not been completely pulled from the Marketplace as the hard link still links to it. Instead, the app has been marked as 'private' probably on error by someone--that mode is for when it is in closed-beta testing. WhatsApp could be re-working the app and may have another version going live soon (this is what happened with the CNN app the other day). We'll keep you posted. In the meantime, you can still see the app from this link though downloading is not allowed due to the 'private' status.

Update 2: WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton responded to the fan site WhatsAppen.com noting that their team hopes to submit a new version to the Marketplace soon. No other details were given but this sounds like an execution error rather than something more deleterious.

We're starting to suspect that WhatsApp will begin charging for the app (it's $0.99 on other platforms) and this is the changeover period. 

Thanks to everyone who tipped us!

It has been little over a month since WhatsApp for Windows Phone received an update with 1.8 rolling out, but the popular IM app has been bumped to 1.9 as of today. As well as sporting video recording and sharing, WhatsApp now allows users to share contacts and browse downloaded media in a conversation.

As well as bug fixes and performance improvements, German and Russion localisations are included with improved support for Emoji. A quick run through of what's new in this update:

• Improved support for Emoji
• Group mute features
• Share contacts
• Browse downloaded media in a conversation
• German and Russian localizations
• The usual bug fixes and performance improvements 

It's great to see continued development from the team for the platform, which puts it up there with iOS, Android and Blackberry. You can download WhatsApp from the Marketplace for free.

Thanks everyone who tipped us on this!

WhatsApp hit v1.6 the other day and right away many of you noticed that you lost the inability to view media--specifically received photos and videos--within the app. That sure is a deal breaker. As we reported the next day, the developers had a mea culpa, confessing that an errant build of the app was submitted to the Marketplace causing the problem.

Now, v1.7 (technically v1.6.2) is live in the Marketplace and it fixes (hopefully) that media-messaging issue and in addition, you get two new functions as well:

• Able to read and change group icon
• Improved scrolling behavior

Sure, the app still lacks some personality in regards to the UI in our opinion but at least the developers quickly fixed what could have been a disastrous release. Hopefully we'll see some more added functions in future updates.

Grab the updated version of WhatsApp here in the Marketplace for free. Thanks, Kirk, for the tip!

Everyone's favorite chat app, WhatsApp, has received what seems like its monthly update--gotta love their commitment. Version 1.6 just hit the Marketplace with a nice changelog of minor new features and a bunch of fixes that must have been introduced in v1.5 from December:

• Unread message count in chats pivot
• Improve behavior when receiving photos on EDGE networks
• Able to add unrecognized users to device contacts
• Able to forward messages
• Update status in UI when successfully setting your own status
• When creating a group, able to remove users from initial list of invitees
• Confirmation prompt when inviting a user to a group
• Fix sort order in group chat invite screen
• Workaround for "no text" problem caused by Advanced Configuration tool
• es-ES localization

Not bad but nothing too crazy either. But those minor additions go a long way for users who rely on this everyday, so its always good to see. You can pick up WhatsApp for free in the Marketplace here. Thanks, Israel I., for the tip!

WhatsApp, the cross platform messenger for your Windows Phone, has been updated to version 1.4. Along with the ability to text across platforms (available for Android, Blackberry and the iPhone) WhatsApp also gives you the ability to send pictures, video messages and now voice notes.

While no official change log is available, it is our understanding that text is larger and sending images is now problem free. If you're seeing additional changes with the update, feel free to share them in the comments section.

You can grab WhatsApp here at the Marketplace. Keep in mind WhatsApp is a mango app so you'll need to be running Windows Phone 7.5.

Thanks goes out to Jon B for the tip!

Speaking of updates, WhatsApp not only updated their app description to reflect a future subscription fee, but also bumped the app to v1.2. So are we finally getting video support? Group chat? How about some avatars in the conversation? Nope.

Instead, under Favorites now, they ditched the letter-picker system, at least if you only have a few contacts. This makes Favorites much more streamlined. It also looks like the Task bar has been thinned out, giving more room on the main screens. Finally you get a  Favorites refresh button under Settings, which is good if you want to make sure you have all of the latest contacts showing.

Update: We've also noticed it now thankfully has landscape support for typing and better auto-correct. HTC Arrive and LG Quantum users, rejoice! (*Also note, you're not crazy--it will still say v1.1 under the About section as the developers forgot to update that part).

Grab it here in the Marketplace (Zune link) or the Web Marketplace.

We now have WhatsApp on the Marketplace for Mango users as of yesterday, which turned out to be relatively bare in terms of features, but functionality is present. We've now caught word of Simon Luk from WeLoveWP.hk contacting the developers asking whether or not more functionality will be implemented in the future.

In the above image we see Jan Koum from WhatsApp stating that the team is "committed very strongly" to Windows Phone and will be adding many features as well as fixing reported bugs. So sit tight with what we have thus far, the future is looking bright for WhatsApp.

Source: WeLoveWP

We saw earlier in this week (video review) the private beta version of WhatsApp, the super popular IM program that's on all other platforms. While minimalist and sparse, the app seems solid, fast and should a great addition for Mango users.

Seeing as it was v1.01 and in private beta, we could surmise that its release is imminent and indeed, that seems to be the case. In an email to the developers, it was asked if they were still accepting people into the private beta. The response speaks for itself:

"Thank you for your message and your interest. We should release a public version on the marketplace within the next 24 hours, so I do not think it makes sense to send a link to the closed group of beta."

Sounds like a done deal to us. So to our eagle-eyed readers, keep a look out for this a-bomb of an app to land in the Marketplace. We'll leave a little wiggle room and give them the weekend though, as sometimes the release process is a little slow.

Via: Plaffo.com

See our hands on experience after the break to get an idea of how it works...