It’s not that Meta makes too many changes when it comes to compatible versions of WhatsApp: generally, The company usually makes the oldest mobile phones obsolete every two years. And that review is just about to happen: in October the minimum to be able to use WhatsApp will be Android 5.0 Lollipop.
WhatsApp is such a universal application that there is almost no smartphone that does without it. At least in Spain and much of Europe, also in Latin America: the app, owned by Facebook Meta since 2014, It is a standard when it comes to instant messaging. To facilitate the exchange of messages, WhatsApp remains compatible with practically all smartphones on the market. Always with exceptions, there is a small part of the telephone fleet that is left out.
Goodbye to support for Android 4.1 and below
Much of the information about mobile phones that lose WhatsApp is false, but in the case of what will happen in October everything changes: the company confirms on its help page that Older Android phones will no longer be able to use the application. And without this affecting the iPhone, the change only applies to devices with the Google operating system.
As stated on the WhatsApp website, the requirements to use the application they go up from Android 4.1 to Android 5.0. Specifically, only those phones with a minimum API level 21 will be able to send and receive WhatsApp messages.
WhatsApp makes the limitations that will come into force in October very clear:
“Starting October 24, 2023, only devices with Android 5.0 operating system and later will be supported”
From the aforementioned date, everyone who has a mobile phone with Android version 4.1 or lower will see a message on their WhatsApp asking them to update the application. And, since all versions of Google Play require a minimum of Android 5, Users who do not meet this requirement will be prevented from using WhatsApp.
While it is true that WhatsApp stops working on some Android as of October 24, the number of affected devices is actually small. In relation to the installation figures shared by Google, Android 5.0/5.1 is on 1.8% of devices; which would be equivalent to about 58 million mobile phones and tablets (Statista figures: 1 and 2). The data is always estimated.
To know if your Android will become obsolete to use WhatsApp, carry out the following process:
- Go into your Android settings and locate “Phone information”.
- Find the software menu and access it.
- Look at “Android Version”. If you have a score greater than or equal to 5.0, you will be able to continue using WhatsApp from October 24.
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