Google Allo – Google's version of chat services like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp – has been available to mobile users for quite some time now, but desktop users haven't been able to get their hands on the chat app until now.
Amit Fulay, Allo's Head of Product, announced that Google's messaging app is now available to desktop users, as long as they also own an Android smartphone – no word on potential iPhone compatibility yet.
In order to give the web client a try, you'll need to open up your phone's Allo app and select the "Allo for web" option from the menu. The app will then prompt you to scan a QR code. After you've done that, any current conversations and chat history on the mobile app will be synced with the desktop client, allowing you to pick up right where you left off. This is similar to how WhatsApp originally launched its web client two years ago.
Though this transition is mostly seamless, Google does have a few kinks to work out before the desktop and mobile versions of the app are equal. The web client is still missing a few features, such as the ability to start a conversation with people who aren't in your contacts, and adjust text size with a slider.
Despite these hiccups, most of Allo's key features are in place. You can chat with Google Assistant to obtain information (or play trivia games) and it's easy as ever to take advantage of Allo's Smart Reply functionality to keep a conversation going even when you don't have the time or inclination to type out a full message.