There are lots of great reasons to use WhatsApp, but for all the secure messaging service offers, it's been a bit of a headache trying to keep track of your conversations as you move from phone to phone, or phone to tablet. The good news is that the app is now making it a lot easier to use it on multiple devices, with a new companion mode that allows you to access your account across more than one smartphone.

WhatsApp already makes group texts between folks using different phone operating systems a lot more manageable by avoiding iMessage, and you can use the service to chat anywhere you have Wi-Fi, making it a great option for texting via your desktop, or while traveling in another country where you might not want to use your carrier’s data. The service also offers end-to-end encryption, making it a safer way to communicate than some other messaging apps and services.

One downside of WhatsApp has been that it only supported having it installed on one phone or tablet. So, if you use one phone for personal business and another for work or while traveling (or you just want to chat on your tablet as well as your phone), then you aren’t able to install WhatsApp on the second device.

Last year, WhatsApp started testing a companion mode with some beta users, and now WABetaInfo reports that the feature is available for all beta testers on Android. Right now that requires the second device to be an Android phone or tablet (iOS isn’t supported yet); however, if your primary device is iOS, then your additional one can be Android.

If you want to try it out, you just need to download the latest WhatsApp beta from the Google Play store and then select “Link a device” on the registration screen. From there, you’ll tap Settings > Linked devices on your main device, and snap a photo of the QR code on your secondary device to connect the two.

You’re able to connect four different devices to your WhatsApp account, so you can also link in your personal and work computer if you’d like to use the service with the benefit of having a full keyboard to respond on.