WhatsApp is making a major change that could cost users more in the new year.
The messenger app that was previously free to use could come with an extra charge, but there are things customers can to to avoid this. According to a Google announcement made last year, all Android users will see WhatsApp backups count toward their total phone storage from 2024.
WhatsApp offers separate storage from a device, meaning users can save thousands of messages and images without taking up Google allowance. But the change means that Android users will either have to delete the majority of their app files, or pay for extra phone storage.
Last December saw the beginning of the rollout to some WhatsApp users, but it is expected to "gradually" rollout to all customers starting in the new year. It will only affect Android users as Apple has announced no plans to bring changes.
"As an important heads up, WhatsApp backups on Android will soon start counting toward your Google Account cloud storage limit, similar to how WhatsApp backups are handled on other mobile platforms," Google announced in a blog post, as reported by the Mirror.
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"This change will first start rolling out to WhatsApp Beta users starting in December 2023, then gradually to all WhatsApp users on Android starting early next year."
Google currently offers 15GB of data for free but as soon as you hit that limit you'll need to stump up and pay more. Read below to see what plans are available, how much it will cost and how you can avoid paying extra.
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How much using WhatsApp could cost and how to avoid paying extra
Google has a number of plans available including 100GB of storage for £1.99 per month or £2.49 per month if you want to double that to 200GB.
There's also the ultimate 2TB plan which costs £7.99 and is suitable for those wanting to keep endless 4K videos online and high-resolution images stored in the cloud.
If you don't want to pay but also don't want to lose your WhatsApp backups, then the simple way to stop the fees is to make sure you clear out any old files, photos and videos from your Google account. Clearing space now will mean you won't be hit by the penalty when the new terms and conditions kick in.
"WhatsApp backups on Android will continue to work, as long as you have available space within your Google Account storage. If you hit your storage limit, you’ll need to free up space to resume backups by removing items you do not need," Google confirmed.
It might be the middle of winter but giving your phone a spring clean now could save you some money.
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