WhatsApp returns to the Windows Phone Store

WhatsApp for Windows Phone has now returned to the Windows Phone Store, following a brief, yet frustrating hiatus. If you didn't have the app installed, you can now download it and get back to chatting with your friends in time for the weekend.

Initial reports suggested that WhatsApp had been removed due to compatibility issues with the Windows Phone 8.1 developer preview, but it actually turned out to be due to a problem with Windows Phone 8 and the current GDR3 update which began pushing out last year. The problem had to do with how notifications were handled on what is still the current “official” version of Windows Phone. There were not a whole lot of details provided, but it likely had to do with the feature that enabled custom notification tones that are available for Windows Phone devices running the GDR3 update.

Since taking the app out of the store, the gang at WhatsApp have been feverishly hammering out a solution to the problem and version 2.11.490 is what we have. There is are no new features added that we can see, but WhatsApp has generally been about keeping things simple and incremental.

Download
Price	Free
Requirements	Windows Phone 7.5; Windows Phone 8.0; Windows Phone 8.1
Press the Search button on your Windows Phone, tap Vision and then scan the following barcode by pointing your device camera toward it