In a few days, those who are using older smartphone operating systems will have to bid adieu to the most popular messaging app in the world — WhatsApp messenger — or at least the most updated versions of the 7-year-old app.
According to its blog, the Facebook-owned messaging app will be ending support on BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, Nokia S40, Nokia Symbian S60, Android 2.1, Android 2.2, Windows Phone 7 as well as iPhone 3GS (iOS 6). Gasp!
“As we look ahead to our next seven years, we want to focus our efforts on the mobile platforms the vast majority of people use,” revealed the team. “While these mobile devices have been an important part of our story, they don’t offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app’s features in the future.”
That means, on the first day of 2018, users of older OSes will no longer be able to create new accounts or re-verify existing accounts on those operating systems.
Additionally, even Microsoft has admitted defeat when it comes to its mobile OS, so the lack of WhatsApp support shouldn’t come as a surprise. “Because we will no longer actively develop for these platforms, some features may stop functioning at any time,” said Whatsapp in its blog.
“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.”
Hm, looks like this could be a great reason to get yourself a new mobile phone!
[Source]
