It is a very good messenger is used by 100,000,000 users worldwide.
And paying such a small cost is not a big issue as this cost lets you ignore advertisements.
Short Message Service (SMS)
SMS is a method of sending 160-character text messages via phones. It was developed as a way to send messages over the stripped-down telephone traffic signaling paths when there was no calling going on, rather than take up chunks of bandwidth space like voice does.
Its beauty is that it's incredibly cheap because it uses hardly any resources, and the resources it does use aren't required for anything else at the time the message is sent.
SMS is cheap, but you wouldn't know it based on the per-message fees telcos have been charging for it -- particularly when roaming.
About WhatsApp App
Crucially, WhatsApp apps are available across smartphone platforms, including within the often-closed iOS environment, so there's a good chance your buddies can play along if you jump in and explain the cost savings to them.
The Android app, available at the Google Play store, is free for the first year, and US$0.99 a year after that. This fee is apparently to make up for the lack of advertising revenue -- WhatsApp doesn't sell advertising.
The app neatly reduces the amount of setup interaction required to get going. For example, it automatically verifies your phone number -- it needs the number because it uses it to route messages -- and it automatically integrates contacts from your address book if they are already WhatsApp users.
That sets it apart from the many interfaces that require you to enter a code to verify a number, or agree to a prompt to import your phone book.
This refreshing approach is prevalent throughout the interface -- there's no login or passcode, for example.
Media-sending is well enabled with photos, videos and audio attachable to a chat -- at no charge. Other features include group chat, sharing location, exact-message time stamps, and history.
Disappointments
One big disappointment was the lack of tablet support . WhatsApp is tightly integrated with phone number for identification and can't function if the device isn't able to receive the verification SMS -- ironically.
I found it a step backward to have to stab around on my phone to get a message out with an expansive crippled tablet lying dormant near by. I'd like to use the tablet for messaging as I now use it for email.
Which brings me to the question of email compared to text messaging. Do we really need a text-messaging service over the data connection? Isn't that what email is in comparison to SMS?
I quite like the ordered approach of email over what can be harried SMS -- the option to reply when it's convenient for me -- and I find email certainly works better than voice calls or texts over time zones. Millions of WhatsApp users reckon not.
Part of my email favoritism has been the shocking unreliability of SMS. There's a good chance an SMS won't get through cross-pond, particularly between CDMA and GSM networks -- and the fact that WhatsApp saves your messages, even when the phone is off, and sends cross-network is a major bonus.
No comments:
Post a Comment