WhatsApp to stop working on devices running on some OS systems from 31 December

WhatsApp will stop working on devices running BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, and Windows Phone 8.0 and older from 31 December, 2017. The Facebook-owned app has made it clear in its blog post, which also gives end-of-life dates, that users of BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10, and Windows Phone 8.0 and older operating systems will not be able to use the app after 31 December, 2017, less than a week from now.

It may be recalled that WhatsApp had extended support for both platforms in June this year and at the same time, had also revealed that the app will stop working for phones running Nokia S40 from 31 December, 2018. The app will stop working on phones running Android 2.3.7 and older (Gingerbread) from 1 February, 2020. The messaging app became unavailable on Nokia phones running Symbian S60, from 30 June, 2017.

The date for the end of support for Blackberry and Windows Phone has not seen any further extensions. Users whose phones have any of the two specified operating systems, should consider upgrading to a newer phone in order to access WhatsApp properly. WhatsApp updates for other OS versions including Windows Phone 7, Android 2.1, Android 2.2, as also iOS 6 were stopped in 2016. 

" 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. If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone before the end of 2016 to continue using WhatsApp," WhatsApp states on its blog.