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Still struggling to figure out why it's so popular. I read the other article[1] on the front page suggesting that the reason for the popularity is that the app

Still struggling to figure out why it's so popular. I read the other article[1] on the front page suggesting that the reason for the popularity is that the app works on low end handsets. But then so does SMS. Is the design of WhatsApp so much better than built in SMS, or is it just the fact that WhatsApp is free? [For me and most people I know SMS is virtually free, but I guess that's not the case around the world] [1] http://blog.textit.in/your-path-to-a-$16b-exit-build-a-j2me-app http://blog.textit.in/your-path-to-a-$16b-exit-build-a-j2me-...

slight 13y ago
It's popular over SMS because: - It's not 10c/p per message which if you're talking a lot adds up. - You can send photos and videos and they show up in the stream. MMS isn't actually configured for most people even if it didn't cost 50c a message. - It does group messaging. - Avatars, UI etc The reason it's popular over apps I think is largely down to savvy use of network effects, particularly that your username is your phone number, so it can scan your phone book and instantly show you who you know that has it. Plus it's available on iPhone, Android, Blackberry and as that article at the top of the main page says, J2ME (news to me but I'm in Europe so not that many feature phones around these days). I'm from the UK but live in Barcelona and it has 97% penetration here.
aestra 13y ago
[For me and most people I know SMS is virtually free, but I guess that's not the case around the world] Define virtually free? I pay like 10 bucks a month for unlimited SMS, that's hardly virtually free!!! If I didn't they cost like 10 cents a message. That's an insane price for sending or receiving a very very small message that costs the phone companies almost nothing to send. I see it working well for say prepaid plans or barebones plans.
ZoFreX 13y ago
I would pay maybe £0.09 per SMS if I wasn't on contract. As it is, I am, but I still have to pay to get a delivery notification - that's £0.01 per message or £0.02 depending on your contract. I send maybe 100 messages per day on Whatsapp and probably about 3 texts. Also, where I live (UK) literally everyone I know who has a smartphone is on Whatsapp. It's completely ubiquitous.
Peaker 13y ago
The reason my friends use it rather than Google hangouts, as an example, is the unique combination of features: * Works on all phones * Has persistent chat groups

slight 13y ago

It's popular over SMS because: - It's not 10c/p per message which if you're talking a lot adds up. - You can send photos and videos and they show up in the stream. MMS isn't actually configured for most people even if it didn't cost 50c a message. - It does group messaging. - Avatars, UI etc The reason it's popular over apps I think is largely down to savvy use of network effects, particularly that your username is your phone number, so it can scan your phone book and instantly show you who you know that has it. Plus it's available on iPhone, Android, Blackberry and as that article at the top of the main page says, J2ME (news to me but I'm in Europe so not that many feature phones around these days). I'm from the UK but live in Barcelona and it has 97% penetration here.

aestra 13y ago

[For me and most people I know SMS is virtually free, but I guess that's not the case around the world] Define virtually free? I pay like 10 bucks a month for unlimited SMS, that's hardly virtually free!!! If I didn't they cost like 10 cents a message. That's an insane price for sending or receiving a very very small message that costs the phone companies almost nothing to send. I see it working well for say prepaid plans or barebones plans.

ZoFreX 13y ago

I would pay maybe £0.09 per SMS if I wasn't on contract. As it is, I am, but I still have to pay to get a delivery notification - that's £0.01 per message or £0.02 depending on your contract. I send maybe 100 messages per day on Whatsapp and probably about 3 texts. Also, where I live (UK) literally everyone I know who has a smartphone is on Whatsapp. It's completely ubiquitous.

Peaker 13y ago

The reason my friends use it rather than Google hangouts, as an example, is the unique combination of features: * Works on all phones * Has persistent chat groups