Weekend Open Forum: What's your favorite mobile messaging app?

[Jos]

Mobile chat and photo sharing apps have seen tremendous growth in the last few years and they’re expected to continue this trend throughout 2014. In fact, surveys indicate that people -- and particularly the important teenager demographic -- are becoming less active on social networks and more active on messaging apps. No wonder Viber was just acquired for $900 million and Facebook tried to buy Snapchat for a cool $3 billion.

Even though overall WhatsApp has taken the lead for monthly active users, the mobile messaging app landscape continues to be highly fragmented, with different services doing well in different global regions.

In this week's open forum we want to know:

Pick up to three options and comment below on why you prefer one service or the other.

I’m mostly a WhatsApp user as pretty much all of my contacts are there and can’t be bothered to try alternatives. I also use iMessage and ocassionaly FB Messenger for people who aren’t on my address book. I’ve tried Line (too bloated for my taste), MessageMe (got messages from random strangers), Hangouts (meh), and Viber (okay but few of my contacts use it). Now I’m trying Telegram which seems more focused on security, has an open API and desktop clients, but only three of my contacts have it and one is married to me.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/55683-weekend-open-forum-whats-your-favorite-mobile-messaging-app.html

 

[TheBigFatClown]

Favorite messaging app? LOL. I didn't know it had a name. I just hit the smiley face icon and send the messages. I guess I could care less. Mobile phones are only to be used when there is no desktop within a 10-mile radius.

 

[davislane1]

I typically use face-to-face. Many of my peers find the entire platform dated, but I like being able to smack people who disagree with me. Most other apps don't have that feature for reasons of liability.

 

[Mister_K]

Kik

 

[Guest]

Imessage, love that it a 7 min video is considered a text message even went sent outside the country!

 

[TomSEA]

You're missing a category in your poll - I don't message.

And that would be me.

 

[bob333]

I am using GO SMS Pro!

 

[Guest]

tomsea:

You're missing a category in your poll - I don't message.

do you still use smoke signal?

I seldom use other messaging apps but if I use one, I use viber.

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Would someone like to convince me how these are superior to normal SMS texting?

 

[TS-56336]

SMS, 'nuff said.

 

[BMfan]

The stock SMS one.
It might cost a little bit more to use but it gets the job done.

 

[dikbozo]

I go rea;ll old school, pencil and paper with snail mail. Can't beat it for things like being impervious to internet snooping, battery running low, 40 below or 140 above (go ahead try to use your device in those extremes). I find that this way you think 3 or 4 times before sending anything and re-reading anything you do actually commit to writing. I would rather talk face to face,(not via Skype or something)than write and these both well before any texting type thing. Too many things get sent that are misunderstood and many times you get no chance to correct.

 

[psycros]

Email. No extra cost, unlimited length and formatting, everyone has an address and their device will always support it.

 

[Guest]

dikzobo:

Can't beat it for things like being impervious to internet snooping,

but what if the mailman is the one snooping (or your wife/husband/neighbor)? almost everything is not safe when someone is determined to know and extract information.

 

[Nobina]

SMS app I got with my phone does the job, clean and simple.

 

[Adhmuz]

I think I've said this before, why reinvent the wheel when your phone comes with one out of the box that works more than adequately for my needs. Must be a generational thing, the need to over complicate the uncomplicated.

 

[dikbozo]

dikzobo:

Can't beat it for things like being impervious to internet snooping,

but what if the mailman is the one snooping (or your wife/husband/neighbor)? almost everything is not safe when someone is determined to know and extract information.

Please note I wrote "impervious to 'INTERNET' snooping". the written matter would have top be digitized first and then it is no longer pencil and paper. A fine point but try to remember the focus here.

 

[hahahanoobs]

Disabled stock Messaging and use Hangouts for SMS.

 

[EClyde]

The telephone

 

[Jad Chaar]

Hangouts is pretty dope.

 

[Guest]

Telegram!

 

[Raoul Duke]

I don't message either. I don't even own a cell phone.

 

[thehacker]

Hike

 

[Guest]

Would someone like to convince me how these are superior to normal SMS texting?

Because chat apps are free to use whereas SMS cost an arm and a leg for many people.

 

[Nobina]

Because chat apps are free to use whereas SMS cost an arm and a leg for many people.

For chat apps you need internet and data connection is much more expensive than SMS, except if you have wireless everywhere you go which you probably don't.