Millions of smartphone users won’t be able to access WhatsApp from January 1, 2021, onwards as their devices will no longer remain compatible with the messaging app. WhatsApp has yet again announced that is withdrawing support for certain older devices that are currently compatible with the messaging app.
Dropping support for older devices is a regular exercise for WhatsApp. This time it is dropping support for any iPhone running on software older than iOS9. Users with these phones won’t be able to use WhatsApp from January 1, 2021, onwards.
Android phone users have not been spared either. WhatsApp will no longer work on Android devices running on devices running Android 4.0.3 or older versions of the operating system. If users have such phones that are no longer compatible with WhatsApp then they must back up their chats before January 1, 2021, if they want to retain them.
The WhatsApp announcement means that the iPhone 4 and models will not be able to access the messaging app from the beginning of next year. iPhone 4S, 5, 5S, 5C, 6 and 6S can all be updated to iOS9, hence they will be able to support WhatsApp once updated.
Phones That Won’t Get WhatsApp Support In 2021:
- iPhone 1
- iPhone 3G
- iPhone 3GS
- iPhone 4
- Motorola DROID RAZR
- Samsung Galaxy SII
- HTC Desire
- LG Optimus Black
Phones That Will Run WhatsApp After Updating To iOS 9, Android 4.0.3, Or KaiOS 2.5.1
- iPhone 4S
- iPhone 5
- iPhone 5S
- iPhone 6
- iPhone 6S
- Samsung Galaxy Note (T879)
- Samsung Galaxy SIII and above
- Motorola DROID 4
- HTC Sensation
- HTC Thunderbolt (4G)
- LG Lucid
- Sony Xperia Pro
- JioPhone (KaiOS 2.5.1 or later)
- JioPhone 2 (KaiOS 2.5.1 or later)
If you’re running one of the above-mentioned devices or any phones from around the same time, you should keep them updated. If your phone isn’t receiving any more updates, it is vulnerable to a number of bugs, unsupported apps, and more malware. Just like WhatsApp, older devices are likely to lose more functionality as apps get more sophisticated and require a better level of security.
They can do so by going to ‘Chat backup’ option under Chats section in Settings. Aside from backing up their chats, users of old devices should also start looking for smartphones that are compatible with WhatsApp if they want to use the messaging app in the future.
