WhatsApp to stop working on millions of phones! Is yours on this list of 43 mobiles
WhatsApp has over two billion monthly active users, which is well ahead of parent company Facebook’s own Messenger app and the company regularly adds features and updates to its apps for both iOS and Android to keep its users hooked on a permanent basis. There are many rivals like Telegram and Signal just waiting for WhatsApp to show a weakness for them to take advantage of. However, there is one thing that WhatsApp is doing that will disappoint many of its users. It will stop working on a huge number of mobiles soon. The company is all set to cut the number of mobiles it officially supports, by phasing out support for old smartphone models. Unfortunately for users with older smartphones, the company is preparing a purge of older devices. The WhatsApp deadline is very near, it will take effect in November, 2021.
According to reports, WhatsApp is expected to stop working on over 40 smartphone models later this year, which means that millions of smartphone users could be locked out of using the service. This means that WhatsApp’s latest smartphone requirements for running the app on Android, iOS and Kai OS have been updated to match the new minimum requirements.
Also read: Looking for a smartphone? Check Mobile Finder here.
Starting from November, WhatsApp users will need to have a smartphone running Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) or an iPhone running iOS 10 or later according to the WhatsApp FAQ. This means that the following smartphones are unlikely to support WhatsApp when November arrives, according to Metro News.
Apple
iPhone SE
iPhone 6S
iPhone 6S Plus
Samsung
The Samsung Galaxy Trend Lite
Galaxy Trend II
Galaxy SII
Galaxy S3 mini
Galaxy Xcover 2
Galaxy Core
Galaxy Ace 2.
LG
The LG Lucid 2
Optimus F7
Optimus F5
Optimus L3 II Dual
Optimus F5
Optimus L5
Optimus L5 II
Optimus L5 Dual
Optimus L3 II
Optimus L7
Optimus L7 II Dual
Optimus L7 II
Optimus F6
Enact
Optimus L4 II Dual
Optimus F3
Optimus L4 II
Optimus L2 II
Optimus Nitro HD and 4X HD
Optimus F3Q
ZTE
ZTE Grand S Flex
ZTE V956
Grand X Quad V987
Grand Memo
Huawei
Huawei Ascend G740
Ascend Mate
Ascend D Quad XL
Ascend D1 Quad XL
Ascend P1 S
Ascend D2.
Sony
The Sony Xperia Miro
Sony Xperia Neo L
Xperia Arc S
Miscellaneous
Alcatel One Touch Evo 7
Archos 53 Platinum
HTC Desire 500
Caterpillar Cat B15
Wiko Cink Five
Wiko Darknight
Lenovo A820
UMi X2
Faea F1
THL W8
What WhatsApp users with old and outdated phones can do
If there is an update available to Android 4.1 or Android 4.2 or any version of Android after that, updating your app should allow you to keep using your phone.
Meanwhile, your iPhone SE, iPhone 6S are supported until iOS 14 and will most likely receive iOS 15 before November, so users should download and update to the latest version to continue using WhatsApp. If you have an older model like the iPhone 4s, you will no longer be able to use WhatsApp after November, according to the report.
If you do decide to switch or upgrade your phone, make sure to take a WhatsApp backup before you delete your old phone’s data. If you want to transfer data from an iPhone to a Samsung phone, this is now possible - just check our handy guide here. There’s no way to transfer data from Android to iPhone yet, but it could come at a later stage.
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