WhatsApp Rollout for Jio Phone to Start in Batches; YouTube App Launching Tomorrow

All Jio Phone users are set to receive the YouTube app on Wednesday, but not everyone will get the highly anticipated WhatsApp on the platform just yet. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) announced the arrival of WhatsApp and YouTube at its 41st Annual General Meeting (AGM) last month. Users who have the Jio Phone will be able to download the YouTube app via the Jio App Store starting tomorrow. Gadgets 360 has learnt that the WhatsApp rollout, however, will be in batches and only some users will get the country's most popular messaging app starting tomorrow. The remaining users will have to wait a little before they get access to WhatsApp, though there is no official timeline yet on this. Alongside the arrival of the new app, Reliance Jio is all set to add the Jio Phone 2 to its lineup to continue its domination in the market of feature phones.

The latest development comes months after Google brought Google Assistant for Jio Phone. The search giant also lately released a Google Maps version for the affordable feature phone. Also, Facebook in February launched a dedicated app for Jio Phone users to expand the engagements on its platform through the user base of the smart feature phone that runs KaiOS.

"The three most popular apps YouTube, WhatsApp, and Facebook will be available to all the Jio Phone users from 15th August," Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani had said while addressing the AGM last month.

To get the YouTube app on your Jio Phone, you need to open the Jio Store and then find the respective app. Similarly, if WhatsApp is available for them, it will appear in the app store as well, though - as mentioned above - it won't be there for all users.

As Reliance Jio Directors Akash and Isha Ambani demonstrated at the AGM last month, you will be able to use WhatsApp and YouTube with your voice command and text. It is also claimed that the experience on both the apps is similar to what you can get on an Android or iOS device.

You can use your voice to search for a video on the YouTube. The app will then use the voice command to start playing the video on the screen. For WhatsApp, users need to type the message using the T9 keypad, though the recipient of the message can be an Android or iOS user. While Jio claims that the user experience will be similar to what Google and WhatsApp-parent Facebook are offering on Android and iOS devices, there are some limitations. For instance, you won't be able to download videos on YouTube to watch them offline. You can also not be able to make voice or video calls using the WhatsApp app. Likewise, you can't make payments using the WhatsApp app.

"With the added functionalities, our widened network reach across India and strong retail presence across India, the goal that I have now set for our Jio team is to enable 100 million users on this Jio Phone platform in the shortest possible time," Ambani had added during his AGM keynote.

Will Jio Phone 2 help WhatsApp, YouTube reach the next billion users in India? We discussed that on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.