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Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

jlamendo
Explorer C

Thanks for this information, I understand that as things progress that some change is expected.  However, you cannot take a version of a working app, force an upgrade and then leave the app nonfunctional.  All my other apps work and are backward compatable with the Android 4.x OS.  Either you need to have 2 versions of the app avaiable to support both the new and old devices.  But you cannot expect everybody to buy new phones everytime you update the app.  Backward compatibility is important.

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

Arizentari
Explorer C

I have two flights booked with you and from here on I'm flying Delta. I'm so frustrated with Southwest's poor corporate customer service and business decisions.  I also have a perfectly functioning phone that I am not going to go trade in because Southwest couldn't try to reverse support the app. I know companies (smaller than SW) that still keep Blackberry servers up to support customers.

 

Also, where was your communication to external stakeholders? My device worked in February and now doesn't in May. I can walk to the kiosk and print a ticket but it would have been nice to know. 

 

All of that isn't even the reason I don't want to give you my business. I rarely see a customer service response from Southwest that included an authentic apology or acknowledgment of the impact to a person, or a solution or attempt to resolve it. I certainly haven't experienced one. It's always "unfortunately" which is a response to remove culpability and some line that passively places the customer complaint as unreasonable. This is perennial and something I remember persisting from the early 2000s. With the competition on both sides of discount and standard fares, customer service actually makes a difference.

 

For the next group of people who find that their device is suddenly incompatible here are some steps to get your mobile boarding pass since SW doesn't seem interested in helping.  

1. Log in to your account on a desktop

2. Go to My Account (top right) and on the next page locate My Trips. Select Upcoming and click on the upcoming flight. 

3. When it is time Check-In. You will be given the option to have your boarding pass emailed or sent via text.

4. If you choose text a link is sent to your phone. Click on it and a boarding pass appears. There is an option to save it as a photo so you don't have to keep loading the link.

 

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

jlh12
Explorer C

I am also upset about the new SW app.  I am getting ready to fly out to help with Hurricane Florence disaster, and I suddenly get a message that my SW is retired and I need to download a new one.  The new one is incompatible with my Moto X phone, and I am not going to buy a new phone to use one new app.  It still works with my other airline apps.  I specifically ask for SW when I get deployed because of the ease of the boarding process, but I will reconsider in the future.  This is just one less stressor that I do not need.  Please reconsider, since it looks like the majority of people in the community have an issue with this.

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

dfwskier
Aviator A

@jlh12 wrote:

I am also upset about the new SW app.  I am getting ready to fly out to help with Hurricane Florence disaster, and I suddenly get a message that my SW is retired and I need to download a new one.  The new one is incompatible with my Moto X phone, and I am not going to buy a new phone to use one new app.  It still works with my other airline apps.  I specifically ask for SW when I get deployed because of the ease of the boarding process, but I will reconsider in the future.  This is just one less stressor that I do not need.  Please reconsider, since it looks like the majority of people in the community have an issue with this.


Regretably, yours is a common complaint.

 

The problem is that with Android, as with Windows, software that worked with previous versions of the operating system do not work with newer versions. That's because the OS has changed. That in turn requires  software companies (in this case Southwest)  to redsign apps to work with the newer versions of the OS.

 

This situation forces Southwest  to choose between supporting the newer OS (which likely has more users), or the older OS (which likely has far fewer users). Auto update of cell phone apps means that if the old app is out there for download, then Android  9.0 users (he most current version) would auto download the "old" app, and then they would complain that their expensive brand new phones can't get the Southwest  app to work.

 

So the currect operating system situation forces Southwest to choose between supporting a larger group of users or a much smaller group. I'm sure Southwest would  prefer to continue to support Android versions up to 5.0, but it seems that is not possible in the current operating system environment.

 

Sorry. 

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

mannaman
Explorer C

I have a 2 year old Ellipsis 10 tablet (android) running 5.1 and I am getting the incompatible message.  App works on my older phone however.

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

djmills55
Explorer C

I have a HTC Desire 610

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

Danbjr
Explorer C

Have Android phone running 4.4  Cannot use the app because it seems to require version 5 or above, which my phone cannot have. Do I need to change airlines? Also, when searching this issue I see others have posted, and the first post says something lved. Link to solution just takes you to another user with the same issue. Perhaps it is time to,take,the,heart off the planes.

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

Bill007
Explorer C

Your Airline app will not load on my BLU Studio Y650Q, nor my Samsung Galaxy S3 Your app and some other airlines will not load. United Airlines loads, are you going to fix this? Please let me know. Very disappointed. You are not the only airline. Must be very poorly written software.

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

AndiPants128
Explorer C

Hi, 

I cannot seem to get my SW app to work on my iPhone X. 

Any suggestions? 

Error code: 400518009

Re: New Southwest App incompatible with my device

jlamendo
Explorer C

I have a Samsung Avant cell phone and when downloading the app is says it is not compatiable with this device.  My daughter has same phone and the old app worked fine, after being forced to update the App hers no longer works either.  We have travel coming up and want this corrected before we leave next week.