WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, with over 2 billion users globally. In recent years, WhatsApp has expanded beyond just mobile devices and is now available across multiple platforms like desktop and web. With Apple’s transition to its own custom M1 chips for Macs, many app developers have had to optimize their apps to take full advantage of the performance gains offered by the new chip architecture. This has left many WhatsApp users wondering – is WhatsApp for Mac optimized for M1 chips yet?
WhatsApp for Mac App Overview
WhatsApp first launched their desktop app for Mac in 2016, allowing users to access WhatsApp on their computers and sync messages between devices. The Mac app runs as a native desktop application using Apple’s AppKit framework.
Some key features of WhatsApp for Mac include:
- Sync messages seamlessly between mobile and desktop app
- Native desktop notifications for new messages
- Make calls with built-in voice and video calling
- Search chats to quickly find messages
- Use keyboard shortcuts for common actions
- Apps remain synced even when phone is offline
Since the initial launch, WhatsApp has regularly updated the Mac app with new features and improvements over time. But how well does it take advantage of the latest Apple silicon chips?
WhatsApp for Mac and M1 Support
In November 2020, Apple launched their first Macs powered by the new M1 chip, the company’s first system-on-chip designed specifically for Mac. The M1 brings major performance improvements over previous Intel chips, with up to 3.5x faster CPU, up to 6x faster GPU, and up to 15x faster machine learning. This allows apps optimized for M1 to open instantly, run smooth workflows, and deliver better overall performance.
Shortly after the M1 Macs were released, WhatsApp issued an update to their Mac app adding official support for Apple silicon and the new chips. The release notes for version 0.4.20257 specifically mentioned “Native support for Apple Silicon” as part of the update.
This means that WhatsApp for Mac is now a universal binary application that natively runs on both Intel and Apple silicon based Macs. It is fully optimized to take advantage of the performance gains offered by the M1 chip’s advanced architecture and efficiency.
Benchmarks have shown that opening the app, loading chats, voice calling, video calling, and overall performance is noticeably faster on a M1 Mac compared to running the app under Rosetta 2 emulation or on an older Intel Mac.
Additionally, the M1 optimization allows WhatsApp for Mac to use less energy and run cooler on an M1 Mac. This improves battery life on portables like the MacBook Air while reducing heat and fan noise.
Ongoing Improvements
While WhatsApp for Mac is now fully functional on M1 Macs, there are still some areas for improvement. For example, the app is currently limited to running as a single window and does not yet support multiple windows like on iPadOS.
Some users have also reported occasional bugs or performance issues, but these are likely to be smoothed out over time with future updates. Overall though, the app runs very smoothly on M1 Macs.
Going forward, we can expect WhatsApp to continue refining and enhancing the Mac app to take fuller advantage of Apple’s silicon and ecosystem. Over time, new versions of the app will likely add more iPadOS-style features for Mac, better integration with macOS APIs, and further optimizations for efficiency.
The company has shown a commitment to delivering a truly native Mac app experience versus just a ported iOS/iPadOS app. As Apple silicon Macs become more widespread, making the WhatsApp for Mac app M1-native further improves the experience for a growing number of users.
Conclusion
To summarize – yes, WhatsApp for Mac is optimized and runs natively on M1 Macs as of version 0.4.20257 and later. The app takes full advantage of the performance gains from Apple silicon, with faster launch times, smoother workflows, and less energy usage compared to running under Rosetta 2.
There is still room for additional enhancements, but WhatsApp for Mac provides an excellent messaging experience on M1 Macs today. As more users upgrade to M1 and Apple silicon based Macs, having a optimized universal binary of WhatsApp is key to providing the best performance.
Key Takeaways
- WhatsApp for Mac is a native desktop app that syncs chats between devices
- Version 0.4.20257+ includes official support for Apple M1 silicon
- The app is a universal binary optimized for Intel and Apple silicon Macs
- Performance is noticeably improved on M1 Macs vs older chips
- There is still room for additional enhancements in future updates
- Having a M1-optimized app benefits growing number of Mac users
So in summary, yes WhatsApp for Mac is fully optimized to run great on M1 chips and will only get better over time. This ensures a fast, fluid messaging experience for M1 Mac owners.