From 1 February 2020, WhatsApp will pack up on a variety of Android and iOS smartphones. The FAQ section of the WhatsApp states that several smartphones won’t be able to run the app as support is withdrawn for older versions of OS.
According to the WhatsApp FAQ section, Android phones running on Android 2.3.7 OS and lower in addition to iPhones running iOS 8 and lower won’t be compatible in the future.
However, WhatsApp will continue functioning on select phones that run on KaiOS 2.5.1+ OS, including JioPhone and JioPhone 2.
WhatsApp has mentioned that these older versions of Android and iOS “cannot create new accounts, nor re-verify existing accounts after 1 February 2020.”
If you’re still using these lower version OS on your phones and don’t want to lose all of your chats after 1 February, 2020, there’s a way to save your chats:
- Open the chat you would like to save, and tap on “options”.
- Tap’ Export Chat’. You’ll then have the choice to download the chat with or without media.
- You can also backup all your chats on Google Drive by going to options>chats>backup.
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WhatsApp also highlighted that ending support for these Android phones and iPhones won’t affect many users.
WhatsApp has listed the operating systems that the app supports and recommends users to use updated devices:
- Android running OS 4.0.3+
- iPhone running iOS 9+
- Phones running KaiOS 2.5.1+, like JioPhone and JioPhone 2
WhatsApp withdrew support for Windows Phone operating systems on 31 December, 2019. It said that the app is “no longer actively developed for these operating systems.”
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Image source: empresa-journal.com
