Due to the increasing number of users on the platform, rolling out features and updates to old/outdated devices would be resource-intensive and counterproductive on the part of the company. This is why the company has been actively dropping support for older devices and operating system over the years. In 2017, for example, the company announced it would be ending support for BlackBerry 7 and BlackBerry 10 devices. The termination of support for certain devices and operating systems actually makes sense as majority of people don’t use them anymore or have jump shipped to better devices and OS. Business-wise, it is a brilliant move; withdrawing support for say 1-2% of users and focusing more on 98 – 99%. The last time WhatsApp dropped supports for older operating systems (in June 2018), the following versions were affected:
Android versions older than 2.3.3 Windows Phone 8.0 and older iPhone 3GS/iOS 6 Nokia Symbian S60 BlackBerry OS and BlackBerry 10
What devices won’t be able to ‘WhatsApp’ in 2019 (and beyond)
Before now, WhatsApp had outlined devices and OS that would be cut-off from its support room and affixed dates to them accordingly. See below:
Nokia S40 until December 31, 2018 Android versions 2.3.7 and older until February 1, 2020 iOS 7 and older until February 1, 2020
Going by the calendar, only Nokia Series 40 (S40) devices will be going the list of devices that are no longer compatible with the instant messaging platform. What this means is that if you use a Nokia Series 40 device, you will no longer be able to create new WhatsApp accounts and some features of the app could stop functioning on the device at any time. You will, however, still be able to use WhatsApp on the device though. The same fate awaits the smartphones running Android v2.3.7 and older and iOS 7 and older when WhatsApp pulls the plug on them by February 2020.
A list of Nokia Series 40 devices
Listed below are some Nokia phones running on the company’s Series 40 (S40) OS: Nokia 206 single SIM, Nokia 206 dual-SIM, Nokia 208, Nokia 301, Nokia 515, Nokia Asha 201, Nokia Asha 205, Nokia Asha 210, Nokia Asha 230, Nokia Asha 300, Nokia Asha 302, Nokia Asha 303, Nokia Asha 305, Nokia Asha 306, Nokia Asha 308, Nokia Asha 309, Nokia Asha 310, Nokia Asha 311, Nokia Asha 500, Nokia Asha 501, Nokia Asha 502, Nokia Asha 503, Nokia C3-00, Nokia C3-01, Nokia X2-00, Nokia X2-01, Nokia X3-02, Nokia X3-02.5. If you own any of the above-listed phones, don’t be stunned when you can’t create a new WhatsApp account or you notice some hiccups and irregularities while using your WhatsApp application. You would have to get a new phone to enjoy the full features of the platform as well as guaranteed future updates and support. And while at it, WhatsApp recommends purchasing devices that run the following operating systems:
Android 4.0 and above iOS 8 and above Windows Phone 8.1 and above
