2022 is ending and it can be a problem for the least expected reason: the compatibility of your mobile with WhatsApp. It is that with the change of the year, several phone models will no longer be able to run the popular messaging application. This will force many to upgrade their device; especially those who have held on to a mobile for quite a few years.
On December 31, the current minimum requirements to download and install WhatsApp on both iOS and Android will expire. Thus, As of January 1, 2023, a few smartphones will definitely be obsolete.
This will not be a problem for those who use relatively new mobiles, of course. But let’s not forget that the Meta platform boasts of being compatible with both the latest generation equipment and those that already carry several “battles” on their backs.
However, each year the compatibility bar is slightly raised, both for technical and security reasons. Offer an application on devices whose operating system does not receive further support or updates carries risksand WhatsApp developers are aware of this.
These phones will no longer be able to use WhatsApp from 2023
From January 1, 2023, WhatsApp will only work on smartphones that use Android 4.2 or higher as an operating system. While on iPhone, compatibility will remain with the models that run iOS 12.1 or newer version.
As you can see, WhatsApp will still be available on phones up to a decade old. After all, Android 4.2 was released in October 2012; while iOS 12 is quite a bit newer (2018), but it’s wildly outdated compared to the features included in iOS 16.2, the most recent version of Apple’s software.
In the case of Android, after all, the phones on which WhatsApp will no longer be able to run from 2023 are the following:
- Samsung Galaxy Core;
- Samsung Galaxy Trend Lite;
- Samsung Galaxy Trend II;
- Samsung Galaxy Ace 2;
- Samsung Galaxy s3 Mini;
- Samsung Galaxy X cover 2;
- Huawei Ascend Mate;
- Huawei Ascend G740;
- Huawei Ascend D2;
- Sony Xperia M;
- Lenovo A820;
- LG Optimus L3 II Dual;
- LG Optimus L5 Dual;
- LG Optimus L7 Dual;
- LG Optimus F3;
- LG Optimus F5;
- LG Optimus F7;
- LG Optimus F3Q;
- LG Optimus L2 II;
- LG Optimus L3 II;
- LG Optimus L4 II;
- LG Optimus L5 II;
- LG Optimus L6;
- LG Optimus L7 II;
- LG Enact;
- LG Lucid 2.
Debugging the list of compatible mobiles
If your phone is not listed here, but is still running Android 4.1 and cannot update to a newer versionyou will also not be able to run WhatsApp from 2023.
In the case of Apple, as we already said, WhatsApp will stop working on devices that use versions prior to iOS 12.1. What is striking is that in some web portals it has been mentioned that the compatibility of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plusboth released in 2015, and the iPhone SE first generationfrom 2016. When the three models are compatible with up to iOS 15, so the messaging app should continue to work without issue if the operating system is up to date.
Those who still use phones with incompatible iOS and Android versions will no longer be able to download WhatsApp from the App Store or the Play Store. In the event that they are already using the application on a device that will lose compatibility, a notification will be shown informing them about it. In cases like this, there is no other solution than to change the mobile for a more recent one, although not necessarily the latest generation.
