Whatsapp

*UPDATE* - Scratch all of this - WhatsApp is coming in March and will be a native BlackBerry 10 app!

With the launch of BlackBerry 10 imminent the big question that most people want to know is which of the big, popular apps will be supported. I'm a huge fan of the cross platform instant messaging client Whatsapp and the other day I suddenly had a panic when I wondered if it would be available on BlackBerry 10. Getting the answer was pretty simple. I just emailed them and lo and behold I got a reply back pretty swiftly, but I'm afraid to say it wasn't the answer I was looking for.

The member of the Whatsapp team that got back to me said "We have no plans to support BlackBerry 10 at the moment, sorry."

After I had stopped crying I then came up with some positive thoughts to cheer me up. They said "at the moment" which clearly means the app will not be available for launch. Maybe, (I'm praying) they are going to wait and see how the new OS from RIM goes down with the general public? If this is the case and BlackBerry 10 sales are big, which I'm confident they will be, they may decide that they are missing out from a big slice of the pie.

I could be wrong, in which case I will have to find an alternative application and talk my buddies into installing it on their iPhones/Android or Windows Phones. Or it will be a case of going back to good old SMS, which I really don't want to do. One of the great features with Whatsapp is that much like BBM, you can tell when a message has been read by the recipient. Having used Whatsapp and BBM for a few years, not having this feature will probably get on my nerves.

There is one other option and that's to side load the Android version. Good old Bla1ze tested this out for me today and all appears to be fine which is good news. But, do I want to have the hassle of doing this? Hell no. I want a native, built for BlackBerry app. Fingers crossed the Whatsapp team change their minds. 

I love Whatsapp for its simplicity as well as its features so this latest news it a bit of a bummer so say the least. Do you rely on Whatsapp too? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts. If you are all with me we may have to start a revolution!

Read more