It’s that time of the year again when WhatsApp will stop working on older operating system versions that still power certain iPhones and Android devices. Long-time WhatsApp users might be familiar with the company’s history of discontinuing support for older devices. It’s something Meta does routinely with WhatsApp, and there’s no reason to panic. You’ll still be able to use the popular chat app once you upgrade your device. But the deadline is almost upon us, so people with certain older devices are running out of time.
As GizChina explains, various iPhone and Android models will not be able to use the chat app beginning on December 31st. WhatsApp will stop working on 47 devices in this latest purge, including Apple’s iPhone 5 and iPhone 5C.
WhatsApp functionality aside, if you rock one of the devices listed here, you should consider upgrading anyway. These handsets are old and can’t run the latest operating systems or app versions. That’s why WhatsApp is removing support – from the company’s FAQ section:
To keep up with the latest advances in technology, we routinely stop supporting older operating systems to point our resources to supporting the latest ones. If we stop supporting your operating system, you’ll be notified and reminded a few times to upgrade your device to continue using WhatsApp.
But if you have any of these phones, you’ve got bigger problems than WhatsApp. These phones will not receive the latest security updates. Not to mention that you’re probably experiencing battery life problems after so many years of use.
Before the December 31st deadline, you should at least back up your WhatsApp chats to ensure a smooth transition to a newer device. You can then upgrade your handset to a new one and resume your WhatsApp chat functionality.
WhatsApp will stop working on all the devices in the following list after the December 31st deadline:
- iPhone 5
- iPhone 5c
- Archos 53 Platinum
- Grand S Flex ZTE
- Grand X Quad V987 ZTE
- HTC Desire 500
- Huawei Ascend D
- Huawei Ascend D1
- Huawei Ascend D2
- Huawei Ascend G740
- Huawei Ascend Mate
- Huawei Ascend P1
- Quad XL
- Lenovo A820
- LG Enact
- LG Lucid 2
- LG Optimus 4X HD
- LG Optimus F3
- LG Optimus F3Q
- LG Optimus F5
- LG Optimus F6
- LG Optimus F7
- LG Optimus L2 II
- LG Optimus L3 II
- LG Optimus L3 II Dual
- LG Optimus L4 II
- LG Optimus L4 II Dual
- LG Optimus L5
- LG Optimus L5 Dual
- LG Optimus L5 II
- LG Optimus L7
- LG Optimus L7 II
- LG Optimus L7 II Dual
- LG Optimus Nitro HD
- Memo ZTE V956
- Samsung Galaxy Ace 2
- Samsung Galaxy Core
- Samsung Galaxy S2
- Samsung Galaxy S3 mini
- Samsung Galaxy Trend II
- Samsung Galaxy Trend Lite
- Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2
- Sony Xperia Arc S
- Sony Xperia miro
- Sony Xperia Neo L
- Wiko Cink Five
- Wiko Darknight ZT
