WhatsApp Inc., the Facebook-owned company behind the eponymous direct messaging app, will stop supporting iOS 7 (and older versions) from February 1, 2020. While Android users are relatively safe for now, people stuck on Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread (and older versions) will also lose support from February 2020, as announced earlier. Of course, if you’re still using Android Gingerbread in 2020, you probably have more things to worry about than WhatsApp messages.
While the aforementioned versions of iOS and Android will still be compatible with the app for the next year and a half, the app-maker says that some of the features of WhatsApp may stop working any time, as it isn’t actively developing for these platforms any more. Meanwhile, if you’re still using Nokia S40 for some reason, you are basically living on borrowed time, as the platform is slated to lose support on December 31, 2018.
According to a post on the official WhatsApp support site, the following platforms are deprecated and will lose support in the near future:
- Nokia S40 – Support ends December 31, 2018
- Android versions 2.3.7 and older – Support ends February 1, 2020
- iOS 7 and older – Support ends February 1, 2020
Only the following operating systems will be supported going forward:
- Android 4.0 Jelly Bean and above
- iOS 8 and above
- Windows Phone 8.1 and above
- KaiOS (JioPhone, Nokia 8110 4G, and JioPhone 2)
You have to give props to WhatsApp for announcing its future plans in advance and also for supporting long defunct platforms and legacy versions for so long. It’s amazing that the company is still supporting Windows Phone and even Nokia S40, even though the vast majority of the global smartphone market is dominated by Android and iOS.
