Tag: instant messaging

Top Instant Messaging Apps For Android
Not a long time ago, we used to send wishes through postcards, which was later replaced by SMS. However, the rise of the internet has made SMS services redundant. Instant messengers have evolved into more than just text messaging mediums. Users can do things like international video calling to sending money, all in one single app. While these apps are free to use, the internet is the only prerequisite.

The instant messengers help for all kind of stuff. From making an international video call to sharing a presentation. However, usually, the only requirement of these apps is the internet. Almost all the instant messengers work fine in either cellular data or a Wi-Fi network. So, here are the top three instant messengers available for Android. However, these three apps are universally compatible, which means they work fine on iOS as well.

WhatsApp

Without a doubt, WhatsApp has become the most famous instant messaging apps in the world. While there are a few anomalies here and there, almost everyone with a smartphone has WhatsApp nowadays. The free to use business model with no in-app ads make this one of the best messengers in the business. One can create groups and add up to 256 members.

Pros:
- Free to use
- Ad-free user experience
- Free voice and video calls
- Simple UI
- WhatsApp Pay
Cons:
- Requires an active SIM card for activation
Facebook Messenger

The Facebook Messenger was something that was forced on to us. Facebook made the Messenger a standalone app and removed the option of chat from its main app. Hence, anyone with a Facebook app, had to move on to the Facebook Messenger as well. But, it has turned out to be a great messaging app, especially for people extremely active on Facebook. However, it has the option of replacing the standard SMS app as well.

The messenger has two sections, where it differentiates the messages and the active users. The active users are highlighted using a green dot. One can also initiate voice and video calls with a single touch of a button.

Pros:
- Free to use
- Material UI
- Free voice and video calls
Cons:
- In-app ads
- App consumes a lot of space
- Complex user experience
Hike

This is also an interesting instant messenger. Though it resembles WhatsApp, it has its own added advantage. The app comes with a hidden mode, where users can hide their secrete chats. This app also offers free stickers, which can be used instead of words to express a certain feeling. In fact, the app has stickers based on Indian celebrities and their famous dialogues as well.

Pros:
- Groups chat with up to 1000 members
- UPI based Hike wallet
- Gift packs
Cons:
- Small user base
- In-app ads
[poll id=”60″]
March 8, 2018
Instagram Is Testing A Standalone Messaging App Called Direct

Instagram, one of the largest social media platforms in the world is testing a new standalone messaging app called Direct. Many are considering this the first step in removing the direct messaging service from the core Instagram app.

The app is available to download on Android and iOS in only six countries as of now-Chile, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, and Uruguay. Once the app is downloaded, it removes the direct messaging feature from the Instagram app. Similar to Snapchat, the Direct app also opens to the camera. This means that if and when Direct is made globally available, it will be the third popular messaging app under the Facebook umbrella, apart from Messenger and WhatsApp.

Hemal Shah, a product manager at Instagram told The Verge:

We want Instagram to be a place for all of your moments, and private sharing with close friends is an important part of that. Direct has grown within Instagram over the past four years, but we can make it even better if it stands on its own.

We can push the boundaries to create the fastest and most creative space for private sharing when Direct is a camera-first, standalone app.

This move sounds familiar because back in 2014, Facebook shut off messaging services inside the Facebook app, in turn forcing users to download another app for that purpose, Messenger. At that time, Mark Zuckerberg justified the decision by stating:

On mobile, each app can only focus on doing one thing wel. Asking folks to install another app is a short term painful thing, but if we wanted to focus on serving this [use case] well, we had to build a dedicated and focused experience.

It will be interesting to see how Instagram handles Direct, in that it might not be as necessary as Facebook Messenger was and probably is. One downfall here is that people will have to juggle between two apps in order to get full Instagram experience and while that may sound easy in new phones, it will be a different case for older phones.

December 8, 2017
AIM To Shut Down On December 15th

One of the pioneers of the instant messaging apps, AOL Instant Messenger is shutting down on December 15th 2017. The news comes 20 years after the launch of AIM, which became a wildly popular feature of AOL, the largest internet provider at the time.

Verizon acquired AOL in 2015 and merged it into a unit called Oath in 2017. VP of Oath said:

AIM tapped into new digital technologies and ignited a cultural shift, but the way in which we communicate with each other has profoundly changed. As a result we’ve made the decision that we will be discontinuing AIM effective 15 December, 2017. We are more excited than ever to continue building the next generation of iconic brands and life-changing products for users around the world.

AOL cut off access to AIM from third-party chat clients in March 2017, hinting that a shutdown is inevitable.With the likes of Facebook, WhatsApp and Snapchat taking over social media, it’s hard to imagine that many people are still using AIM. Keeping that in mind, it seems unlikely that this shutdown will affect anyone or anything.

This is not the first time that a classic IM app has shut down. MSN Messenger shut down in 2014, and Yahoo Messenger shut down in 2016 however, Yahoo launched a new messaging service under the same name.

One of the most widely used instant messenger back in ’90s and early 2000’s, AIM bridged the gap between friends who had moved to different places. With time, AIM fell down the pecking order as the era of smartphones reached the fore. Text messaging has taken over precedence over desktop instant messaging apps, and increasingly, social media apps like Snapchat and Instagram, are taking over text messaging in certain ways. Nowadays, everyone is connected to their long lost friends and relatives on Facebook which provides instant messaging solutions on the go.

October 7, 2017
Here’s Why Twitter is Breaking Free From the 140-Character Restriction

Twitter had added direct messaging service (DMS) but it was always restricted to just 140-characters. Now, frequent Twitter users will be happy to know that the social network is finally putting an end to the restriction, and making it 10,000 characters as opposed to just 140. Thus DMS will function like any other regular instant messaging service, effective this July.

In a rather smart move, they announced:

We’ve done a lot to improve Direct Messages over the past year and have much more exciting work on the horizon. One change coming in July that we want to make you aware of now (and first!) is the removal of the 140 character limit in Direct Messages.

It is a welcoming change as having a limit over DMS was more of a nuisance than a boon. However, while the DMS will no longer have a restriction, public tweets will continue to be within the 140 character limit.

This comes as a great relief to the social networking giant because it might finally give them a chance to compete with other instant messaging services like WhatsApp and Facebook and even add to their user base.

In a short span of time, Facebook’s standalone app, Messenger has grown immensely. Recently Facebook announced that the Messenger service already has a staggering 700 Million monthly active user base. It added a 100 Million users in the past three months. While Facebook’s new app’s numbers are growing at an unfathomable rate, Twitter is currently stuck at a mere 302 Million Active users. Back in April, even WhatsApp had announced that it had crossed the 800 Million monthly active user mark.

This change might give Twitter a fair chance to compete. Also, according to Forbes, people spend 86% of their Twitter time via smart phones, this will therefore, be further enhanced as people will now be able to have long chats on the social handle, without even needing to ‘follow’ one another. Naturally, this will increase Twitter’s fortunes as well.

Along with this, Twitter is planning a few other updates and changes that will further improve the performance of the site. We hope to hear more good news soon. Watch this space for more.

June 12, 2015
Pinterest Rolls Out its Own Messaging Feature

With the ever-growing market of instant messaging app, every social networking company is coming up with innovative new ways to get in touch with your friends and families. Facebook recently announced the stand alone Messenger and dropped chat window in the app. Meanwhile, new startups are also coming up with innovative ideas to make instant messing fun such as Fling.

Now, Pinterest is joining this race by rolling out a new messaging product called “Conversations”. It seems to be growing up to become a true social network. The digital scrapbooking service announced on Wednesday that its users can now send each other direct messages.

“Say you’re organizing a camping trip with friends – try sending Pins to the whole gang so you can figure out where to go and what meals to make,” Pinterest product designer Tom Watson wrote in a blog post. “If you need a reminder of who’s bringing what, just pull up the conversation right from your notifications.

Direct messaging is meant to be an addition to the “send a pin” feature Pinterest rolled out in May 2013. The idea now is that when users receive a pin, they can reply with a message or send back another pin.

Starting today, the company is rolling out messages on Android, iOS, and the web. Like Facebook’s ‘chat heads,’ the recent messages pop up to the left of the feed as bubbles with your friends’ faces. You’ll find the others under the pin icon where notifications pop up.

Just click the ‘+’ icon, type in the name of a friend on Pinterest, and you can send a pin or a standalone message. The impressive thing about Pinterest messages is that the pins you send within the app retain all the functionality of a pin you see anywhere else on the site.

Anything you can do with a pin on Pinterest’s web site, you can do inside a message: pin it to a board of your own, send it to another friend, or click the ‘heart’ to add it to your list of favorites. You can even drag a pin from the site into a message.

Earlier this year Pinterest launched “guided search” which recommends keywords to help refine searches on the service. The feature helps people find the stuff they are looking for and the stuff they didn’t know they were looking for.

August 7, 2014
Instagram Joins the ‘Instant Share and Delete’ Game with its Bolt App

Snapchat began a race for instant messaging in which the content disappears once it is viewed. Now Instagram has brought its own app to counter Snapchat’s dominance in the field. Facebook did try to take on Snapchat with its Slingshot app which garnered a lukewarm response. Now it attempts to try the same with its subsidiary, Instagram.

You don’t have to look around in your huge contact list to find folks you chat with the most. The app lets you have upto 20 favorites to share your images with. To take a snap you just have to tap the contact for a snap or tap and hold to record a video. The UI is really minimalistic and easy to understand.

To sign up for the service you will only need your phone number. You don’t need a Facebook or Instagram account. This is the moment of evolution in mobile chat where text is slowly replaced by photos and videos. The service also lets you bring back deleted pics to return within the first few seconds of deleting if you wanted to see that snap once more, before it goes into oblivion. The one sect of people who will be particularly disappointed by these developments are the NSA analysts. Those guys had to deal with reading all those emails and texts were having an easier time with images, but instantly deletable messages might be an issue for them. But they might just hack into the service to retrieve the information.

Even though the app is available for iOS or Android, Bolt is currently only available in Singapore as an app called Bolt already exists. The other Bolt is a mobile voice app and has been around for quite a while. The developers of the other Bolt, Benton have filed an application but haven’t got a trademark yet. They are adamant about keeping the name. Benton were also eventually going to start their own messaging service. But with a prominent company like Instagram coming out with a messaging app with the name Bolt would prevent that from happening.

It will be interesting to see which side caves first. Will it be the big pocketed Facebook or Benton? For the moment if you want Instagram’s Bolt, you can download the apk available easily online.

[poll id=”16″]

July 30, 2014
Microsoft will kill the Messenger, merge it with Skype

Microsoft has announced that it will retire long time messaging champion MSN Messenger and will streamline transition into recently acquired Skype. The Skype client added support for Messenger contacts and chat just two weeks ago, when version 6 was released. Within six months, the Skype client will be the only option available for connecting to Messenger contacts.

Though the Skype client now connects to both Skype and Messenger networks (and Facebook too), the networks are at present still separate, and there’s no bridging between the two. Microsoft is working on moving users in a fast way, Messenger users signing in to Skype for the first time have to either merge their account with their own Skype account, or create a new Skype account if they don’t have an existing one. Users of the Skype client can see both networks; Messenger clients, whether first- or third-party, will only see Messenger users.

For those worried about their buddy list, rest assured the list will be transferred to Skype.

[Skype]

November 7, 2012
Messages Beta available for Mac OS X Lion

If you heard about the recent launch of the new OS X Mountain Lion from Apple, you would have heard of their iMessage client for Mac – messages. The folks at cupertino have seeded a beta download for all those on Mac Lion to preview and test out the upcoming Messages on OS X Mountain Lion. Hit the link below to begin the download if you are already on Lion.

[Apple]

February 17, 2012
Microsoft Lync the first to link WP7 – Blackberry – Android – iDevices

Microsoft Lync is ready to hit your portable devices in a fast and swift motion. MS Australia tweeted that they are working on a synergised app for all Smartphone OS’s software becomes available for Android, BlackBerry, iOS and Windows Phone.

[Microsoft Australia (Twitter)]

November 26, 2011
Rumor : RIM is ready to bring BBM to iOS and Android

As we reported earlier HERE . Several different sources are confirming that RIM may just be ready to bring the BBM goodness to the iOS and Android operating systems. It will come as a messaging only app and not the full featured messenger on the Blackberry itself, But, it gives an end to the long awaited interconnectivity b/w BB folks and Apple Lovers. The Android version should be out in the near future, or within this year atleast. The iOS version may depend on how Apple approval system looks at the whole interface in the first place.

On both ends Pricing of the app remains unknown. So feel free to speculate on how much the app should be.

[Boy Genius Report]

March 3, 2011