There's no bones about it. Using WhatsApp on an iPad is a bit of a farce right now because you have to mess around using the web app rather than a real app - because there isn't one. Not yet, but that might be about to change.

We've been hearing reports of a native WhatsApp iPad app being in the works for months and now it looks increasingly likely that such a thing isn't all that far off rolling out to everyone who wants it. In fact, some people are already using a real WhatsApp app on their iPad which means that we now know exactly how it will work. And if what we're hearing is true, it'll work just the way you'd expect it to.

It's WhatsApp but on your iPad

WhatsApp routinely makes new versions of its iPhone app available to beta testers via TestFlight and it's that process that has outed the new iPad app. The beta watchers at WABetaInfo report that people who are already on the TestFlight beta now have access to the iPad version as well. "Finally, after waiting for a very long time, we’re happy to announce that a beta version compatible with iPad can now be installed via the TestFlight app for all beta testers who can already use the beta app on their mobile devices," the WhatsApp followers report.

Setting up WhatsApp on the iPad works in much the same way you might expect. Once installed, users simply have to open WhatsApp on their iPhone and head to the Linked Devices section before choosing the option to link a new one. They'll see a QR code that needs to be scanned and it's plain sailing from there. "After linking your iPad with your iPhone, you will be able to use WhatsApp on your iPad independently, without needing your phone to be connected to the Internet, which is a significant convenience for those who work on their tablets," we're told.

It's important to note that this is still a beta and we don't know when it will be rolled out to everyone. But the fact that WhatsApp has gotten this far is a good sign and we can only cross our fingers and hope that WhatsApp will be on iPads all around the world sooner rather than later.