G+_Ned Jeffery Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 MA Sierra WhatsApp is good for countries where sms's still cost 20c each. Telegram is my choice because they have an app for EVERY platform. And it's all synced and you can message groups. Can't do that with SMS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_MA Sierra Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 Ned Jeffery But I can do that with Hangouts (and I know it's not popular with a lot of people) all through SMS and the recipient doesn't have to also have Hangouts. Furthermore, it's free and doesn't limit me to a certain amount of messages if I'm not paying a monthly fee. I think there certainly are benefits to SMS apps like Telegram and WhatsApp, especially for those countries, but is it needed in countries like the US? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Scott MacDonald Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 For those looking at trying Connections, you can try it by downloading the apk from APK mirror. I did, and it installed fine and I'm testing it out now (in Canada). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Ned Jeffery Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 MA Sierra? yes hangouts has pretty much all the features of Telegram. I agree with you. And I spent years convincing people to use hangouts. But Google let it suffer, so I let it die. As for SMS, I don't care if it works for you. It doesn't nessisarily work for everyone else. Hense the need for messaging apps. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Craig Popovich Posted February 19, 2016 Share Posted February 19, 2016 I've been using Telegram with my friends for about 2 years now, and it's replaced Hangouts for me completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_MA Sierra Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 Ned Jeffery?? I understand that not everyone should use something just because it works for me. I apologize if it sounded that way. I was just curious about the attraction considering their limitations? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Ned Jeffery Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 MA Sierra fair enough. Everything was it's limitations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_L I Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 MA Sierra the benefit for non-SMS messaging apps is the extra features it allows as well as removing the need for going through your carrier and of even being tied to a phone. Hangouts and Facebook Messenger can be used on a PC or tablets, most others need a phone number only to verify your account but then can be used from a tablet. I believe WhatsApp needs a phone to work but then you can offload somehow to a PC. One of the cool things about these standalone messaging apps is the features such as sending gifs, sending full resolution photos and video, sending audio clips (both recorded and pre-recorded), sending files, and video calls including group video calls like the original hangouts. Some apps even let you send money between people or companies. Then you have the business focused messaging apps like Slack with even more features that let you almost replace email. Of course the downside is that you need everyone on the same platform. With SMS, the network is a lot larger with pretty much most phone companies hooked together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_joseph Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 I really like hangouts, it works really well. I don't see a reason for it to have sms in it.. My only complaint is I wish more people had it. But that's true of most messaging apps beside Facebook which I like the least... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Con Diamantis Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 Ron Richards Jason Howell Bryan Burnett That rumours bumper with the cute doggy and Ron's voice, make it a thing . :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Frank John Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 I've been using Telegram ever since Facebook bought WhatsApp. I even use the web interface when on my work computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Craig Popovich Posted February 20, 2016 Share Posted February 20, 2016 Telegram's standalone desktop client is amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Marlon Thompson Posted February 22, 2016 Share Posted February 22, 2016 So here is the transcript of the 2014 security episode where steve gibson discusses Telegram, its a good read. https://www.grc.com/sn/sn-444.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Pete Moisan Posted February 23, 2016 Share Posted February 23, 2016 Marlon Thompson As you said, that was from two years ago. Since then the EFF has twice updated the security score of Telegram and now the secret chats have earned a perfect score. https://www.eff.org/secure-messaging-scorecard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Marlon Thompson Posted February 23, 2016 Share Posted February 23, 2016 Pete Moisan I have a post in this community that highlights that and Steve Gibson's updated take on it from late last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Pete Moisan Posted February 23, 2016 Share Posted February 23, 2016 Thanks Marlon Thompson, I will check it out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Adam Rattray Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 Lionel D You make good points, and it makes sense to use one of these solutions if you have a specific need. For instance, I work in IT and we use Slack for intra-department communications, and it pretty much has replaced email and SMS for us. However, you correctly identified the main problem for the general populace. I have tried several of these apps, and they all work great and do what they're supposed to do. But if everyone I contact isn't using the same app/service, then the benefits still don't outweigh the hassle of using multiple apps. And I still would have to use SMS to communicate with Mom. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Adam Rattray Posted February 24, 2016 Share Posted February 24, 2016 If your need is to use messaging from a computer or tablet, try MySMS or MightyText. Both are free and have tablet and web apps. I use MySMS at work, and my wife uses MightyText. They both work great, and it gets us around her work's no cell phone policy! Edit: I forgot to mention that these apps use SMS through your smartphone, so you still need a phone with SMS messaging. If that's the case and you need/want the ability to send SMS from a computer or tablet, I believe either of these apps would be the perfect solution! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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