We’re getting a lot of emails (some of them with links to some shoddy reporting) that WhatsApp has been pulled from the Windows Phone Store and even some sinister “because they want to charge us” rumor mongering.
For the record, WhatsApp is still available as we just uninstalled and re-downloaded it to our Lumia 900. But true, the app is hidden. The issue for which many of you are experiencing is that app is not available for Windows Phone 8 devices. That’s a different issue and is most likely one of the dozens of compatibility problems some apps are having with the new platform. SkyDrive and Skype too were unavailable for a few weeks when 8 devices were first making the round, so it make sense that WhatsApp probably fell into that trap as well.
For the record, there is no evidence that WhatsApp will come back at a price and since it’s a free, we find it hard to gripe too much about what can be best described as poor service and a lousy app anyway.
Rant Alert: Look, WhatsApp has never been good on Windows Phone. Heck, it’s barely good on the iPhone. If you’re expecting that to change, well, you’re a believer. We’re not. Our advice if you don’t like a service or the software that’s powering it, move on. We’re running Kik just fine on Windows Phone 8—and there are plenty of other good services out there like TalkBox, which do even more. WhatsApp users just seem like a tortured bunch to us—everyone hates the app and the service, but they can’t live without it either. Maybe it’s time to convince your friends and family to move on?
Windows Phone 7 users: you should still be able to get WhatsApp here in the Store. Windows Phone 8 users, you’re out of luck until that crack team of developer dropouts releases an update. We’ll of course keep you posted as soon as that new version hits to bring your WP8 compatibility. We'll then followup with a post about how the app still doesn't work well.
And remember, if you can't find an app in the Store that should be there, just use Bing search on your phone or search on WPCentral for the direct link.
