Facebook-owned WhatsApp is one of the world’s most popular instant messaging service. It may not be hugely popular in the US, but it’s replaced SMS as the preferred method of text-based, phone-to-phone communication for nearly a billion users.
But now you don’t need to unlock your phone to use WhatsApp. There’s been a web interface for a while, and now WhatsApp has also launched desktop apps for Windows and OS X.
You still need a smartphone to start using WhatsApp. In order to register your account with the desktop app, you’ll be asked to scan a QR phone with the mobile app.
This helps link WhatsApp’s desktop app to your account… which is tied to your phone number.
Once that’s done, all of your communications will be synchronized between your phone and your desktop. That means messages sent on one device will be displayed on the other. It also means you can view incoming messages and other notifications on your computer without unlocking your phone.