Thousands of users will have to do without WhatsApp as the messaging platform removes support for various older smartphone models.
More than 40 models will be impacted from Monday, with a message from WhatsApp technical support reading, "WhatsApp will no longer support Android phones running OS 4.0.4 and older on November 1, 2021. iPhone requires iOS 10 or newer.
"For the best experience, we recommend you use the latest version of iOS available for your phone."
This means that anyone without a supported device will no longer be able to send messages, make video calls or access photos and videos using the encrypted messaging service.
Here’s the full list of the phones on which WhatsApp will no longer work and some ways to fix the issue.
Which phones will WhatsApp stop working on?
iPhone
- iPhone SE
- iPhone 6S
- iPhone 6S Plus
Samsung
- Samsung Galaxy Trend Lite
- Galaxy Trend II
- Galaxy SII
- Galaxy S3 mini
- Galaxy Xcover 2
- Galaxy Core
- Galaxy Ace 2
LG
- Lucid 2
- LG Optimus F7
- LG 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
Huawei
- Ascend G740
- Ascend Mate
- Ascend D Quad XL
- Ascend D1 Quad XL
- Ascend P1 S
- Ascend D2
Sony
- Xperia Miro
- Sony Xperia Neo L
- Xperia Arc S
ZTE
- ZTE Grand S Flex
- ZTE V956
- Grand X Quad V987
- ZTE Grand Memo
Others
- The 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 to do if WhatsApp doesn’t work on your phone?
If you have a newer model but with an outdated software, you can attempt to upgrade your operating system first.
You can do this by going into general settings and looking for any updates that need to be made. Make sure your phone is connected to wi-fi and is fully charged, or plugged in while doing this.
If you see updates then you can download and install the upgrade. However, if you see no updates then upgrading to a newer phone will unfortunately be your only option.
The other option you have is saving your chat history. There are two ways to do this.
One is backing up your message history to Google Drive or iCloud depending on whether you use Android or iOS. Alternatively, you can export your chat history as an email attachment.
