WhatsApp has confirmed that Android version 2.3.7 and older as well as iOS 8 and older will not be supported after next month.
Several users won’t be able to access WhatsApp starting next month
WhatsApp has announced that it will stop running on a host of Android and iPhone smartphones from February 1, 2020. Affected users won't be able to use their existing accounts, and will lose their chats if they do not export their chat history before the deadline. Recently, WhatsApp shut down support for Windows Phone users from December 31, 2019 i.e., just a few days ago. With the February 1 deadline, users utilising devices running Android version 2.3.7 and older, as well as iOS 8 and older, will be affected, and these users are already being restricted from creating new WhatsApp accounts or re-verifying their existing accounts, but they are allowed to use it till next month. After the deadline, these users will not be able to use WhatsApp at all.
As mentioned, the instant messaging app has confirmed that Android version 2.3.7 and older will not be supported after February 1 next month. iPhone users on versions iOS 8 and older will not be supported either. This means millions of devices will not be able to use WhatsApp. All these device owners must update their smartphones to newer versions, get a new smartphone, or export their chats to avoid losing all their conversations.
To save your chats, head to WhatsApp, open the chat you wish to export and tap on the ‘three dots' on the top right of the chat screen. Tap on More > Export Chat > and select whether you want to include media or not. Once you select the appropriate option, select the platform you want to save your chats to. You can choose to send it to your email account, where you can keep those saved chats to come back to later. The company notes that the Export Chat option isn't available in Germany.
WhatsApp is still working on select phones running KaiOS 2.5.1+, including Jio Phone and Jio Phone 2. For Android and iPhone users, WhatsApp recommends phones running on Android OS 4.0.3 and newer, and iOS 9 and newer.
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