While there does not seem to be a lot of difference between a smartphone made today and one made ten years ago, at least outwardly, the reality is that the technology that they have inside has nothing to do with each other. Security measures, ways in which software interacts, etc. This is why every so often companies publish a list of devices they will no longer give service to, and the latest one to do it WhatsApp, who has a new list of devices that use older versions of operating systems such as Android or iOS and that will no longer be able to use the app.
Part of this is planned obsolescence, after all of these devices work, and continue to give good service to their users, discontinuing service only serves to put perfectly functioning devices into landfills and force users to purchase the newer models. But another part is just that there are way too many devices out there with completely different operating systems that require different security updates and measures, and that is all time and money for companies.
Once the number of old devices dwindles down enough, after all the majority of users swap them out well before companies stop giving them service, companies stop seeing giving them service as profitable and just stop.
Which Samsung phones will lose WhatsApp?
WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world and as such is utilized by plenty of users in plenty of countries, which is why users are receiving plenty of notice to be able to either swap their phone for a newer version or to use an alternative app. The deadline the company has given to users is June 2025, but of course not everyone will have to change.
According to Meta, owner of WhatsApp, the minimum version required to continue using WhatsApp is Android 5 or iOS 12 and phones that do not meet these requirements will not be able to update the app from the corresponding store or open it. This means that users of the Galaxy S3, Galaxy S4 Mini, and Galaxy Note 2 amongst others will need to start backing up their stored information before the app stops working.
The affected phones will lose access to conversations, photos, videos, and other stored documents, unless they have been backed up via Google Drive.
If you are unsure of whether or not your phone will continue to support the App, you will need to check the operating system version. On Android devices, this can be done by accessing the “Settings” menu and then selecting “About phone.”
It is no coincidence that the support to these devices comes now that Meta has introduced artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools, such as the Meta AI chatbot. These features require a lot of internal infrastructure that older devices cannot support and since opting out of these features is not an option, the company is choosing to halt service rather than maintain an outdated version.
Sadly the only way for users to continue using WhatsApp is to purchase a newer phone. Using WhatsApp Web or the desktop version will only help for a little while, although these need to be paired to a phone in order to work, so these will not solve the problem in the event of a complete loss of compatibility and will leave you back at square one. This is not the first time WhatsApp has discontinued support for certain models and the company keeps a running list of compatible devices based on technical and security criteria, so check it periodically if you have an older phone.
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