Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- WhatsApp for Wear OS briefly stopped working this week, showing an “obsolete” version error.
- Samsung, OnePlus, and other watch owners were affected across various Wear OS builds.
- A new Play Store update has since fixed the issue for most users.
WhatsApp briefly stopped working on Wear OS smartwatches this week, with many users suddenly finding the app unusable. Opening it brought up a message stating that the version had become “obsolete” and needed updating, despite the users believing that the latest version was already installed. Thankfully, it appears that the issue may have now been resolved.
Reports began appearing on several Reddit threads a couple of days ago, where owners of various smartwatch brands, including Samsung and OnePlus, all described the same issue. One post on r/WearOS showed the full-screen error message and dozens of replies from people on Wear OS 3.5 through 6 who couldn’t open the app or complete authentication. One user said they could still reply to incoming messages via notifications, but couldn’t access chats directly.
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A few users found temporary workarounds. Joining the WhatsApp beta program in the Play Store seemed to work for some, as did deleting the app and reinstalling it with the watch connected over Wi-Fi. However, most said the only real fix came once WhatsApp pushed a new update to the Play Store in the last 24 hours.
After the release was installed, affected users confirmed that the Wear OS version started working again without further steps. If you’re experiencing the same issue, check for updates. These mistakes happen from time to time, and it’s refreshing to see a fix be pushed so quickly in response.
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