No, WhatsApp won’t be suspending support for older iPhones
Several outlets reported this week that WhatsApp will stop working on certain older iPhone models from January 2021. It might seem like credible news, WhatsApp had discontinued support for certain models in the past.
However, that isn’t the case this time around, as confirmed by WABetaInfo, a trusted source about WhatsApp news and updates.
WhatsApp is not dropping the support for older iPhones. It’s fake news.
WABeta Info, Twitter, 22 December 2020.
WhatsApp won’t suspend support for older iPhones
Recent reports indicated that iPhones running on iOS 9 – such as the iPhone 4 and earlier models – would lose WhatsApp support in the new year. Anything from an iPhone 4S and newer would reportedly be safe.
Users were instructed to upgrade to iOS9 as soon as possible. However, unlike in the past when WhatsApp announced which devices would not receive updates any longer, the FB-owned hasn’t shared any announcement recently.
A quick look at WhatsApp official blog shows that the recent changes to the world’s biggest chat app includes a new feature called Carts, and an announcement about ways in which users in India can send payments over WhatsApp.
Upcoming WhatsApp features
Developers are constantly working to upgrade the most-used messenger app. Some of the upcoming features include a read-later feature, as well as disappearing messages and a biometric unlock feature.
The Read Later feature is currently in its beta testing phase. Once rolled out, it will allow users to archive chats; you won’t receive new notifications while this feature is enabled. It’s similar to the Vacation Mode.
The disappearing messages feature was first mentioned back in October 2019, when WhatsApp rolled out a work-in-progress version of the feature through its Google Play Beta Program.
And lastly, WA Beta Info reported earlier this year that WhatsApp is improving the current Fingerprint Lock feature for Android users.
Crowned top mobile app
In other news, the Facebook-owned app was recently crowned as the top non-gaming mobile app. Analytics company Sensor Tower confirmed that the app was installed 58 million times in the month of November.
Approximately 30% of all installations were from India; while the country with second-most installs was Nigeria. Following WhatsApp, the top five include TikTok, Facebook, Weather & Radar USA, and Instagram.
“Our estimates include downloads for the App Store and Google Play worldwide between 1 November 2020 and 30 November 2020. […] We report unique installs only”.
