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Forget about WhatsApp in 2018, if you own these phone gadgets


WhatsApp’s farewell note for 2017 is not good news for some smartphone users. The app company said they will stop support for customers using Nokia, Windows and BlackBerry phones along with phones running old software versions after December 31.

According to the Facebook-owned app, WhatsApp blog post with end-of-life dates clearly mentions that users of BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, and Windows Phone 8.0 and older operating systems will not be able to use the app after December 31, 2017 and that it will not be offering any more technology upgrades.

“If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone to continue using WhatsApp,” part of the blog read.

Additionally, Android operating systems (common on Google, Samsung, HTC or OnePlus smartphones) versions 2.3.7 and older will stop working on February 1, 2020.

“This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp,” it continued.

EXTENDED SUPPORT

WhatsApp had extended support for both platforms in June 2017. At the time, WhatsApp had also revealed that the app would stop working for phones running Nokia S40 from December 31, 2018.

The app will also stop working on phones running Android 2.3.7 and older (Gingerbread) from February 1, 2020.

The messaging app became unavailable on Nokia phones running Symbian S60, from June 30, 2017.

Facebook initially claimed it would not be able to establish “reliable automated matching between the two companies’ user accounts”, when it bought WhatsApp, according to the EU regulator.

But in 2016 it changed its privacy policy to alert customers their WhatsApp and Facebook account information would merge to provide targeted advertising.