Is WhatsApp the SMS-killer?

Two things I LOVE about whatsapp

1) On the iPhone, it lets you know with a tick if your message has sent successfully, and a second tick indicates that the message has been opened and read by the person you sent it to
2) Cost - if you had to work out the cost, it is probably hundreds if not thousands of times cheaper than an SMS - depending on your bundle

I am on my way to the USA right now. Whatsapp will be my method of texting my GF back home, and Viber and whistle will be used for free phone calls, as long as I want, to S.Africa, using the hotels free wifi
 
Bern said:
Um, yes it does...
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Um, no it doesn't.
I can kill the WhatsApp process on my iPhone and still receive messages. It uses Push Notifications through Apple's severs (Just like all off the built in Apple apps)
 
been using whats app now for a few month and loving it...soon i will stop smsing....old and expensive technology.
 
Been using it for awhile. Started using it before making Wifi connect priority worked! Only realized the feature was working recently. Had to put my phone in offline mode when I never had airtime. Use it with most people I speak to and works pretty good.

usage:
messages: 6262 sent, 5479 received
total bytes: 6.5mb up, 11mb down
 
WhatsApp beauty is that you need a physical number to participate. Often I have friends who have various accounts on other chat programs; and that is annoying.
 
rbarryza said:
Why is WhatsApp getting so much coverage? It's no different from any other IM app on your phone, including Mixit, Fring, Google Talk, etc. It's not new, what's the big deal? Or am I missing something?
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WhatsApp is a sms killer and also a battery killer but smartphones need to be charged often in any case if you are using Apps. This also allows you to send over files to users and is easy to set up and use, scans your address book and finds other users on WhatsApp and away you go. Data charges are low if you stick to just texting. Good to see it on all platforms now. Group chat is another new feature which will be very useful.

If they can get it on ordinary J2ME for Java-enabled lower-end phones then it will take over the world!!
 
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Well I installed it after reading this article and having been using ever since. I like its simplicity and the fact that it integrates well with the phone. Much better than mxit.
 
isie said:
nope i get mesages even when im conecting on edge - which is most of the time when im in the office, reception is crap, but i still get my whatsapp messages
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True. The Blackberries that have no 3G also use it.

I have a number of contacts who use it who have no 3G who I WhatsApp with who have the Blackberry Curve (basic i.e. with no 3G).

This is the demise of SMS.

There are also other social networking Apps like Nimbuzz which have even more functionality and which a lot of people I know are now using, which make it easier to chat and send attachments at limited costs.

Network operators should focus on increasing data usage rather than strategise around how to stop people from using effective communication modes like WhatsApp.

In my opinion, it is only Network operators who aim to take the easy route to making profits by blocking such apps with the aim of profit maximising at the expense of more effective ways to communicate who will maintain the high use of SMS.

The more people take up smartphones, the more SMS is used less.
 
surfs-up said:
Two things I LOVE about whatsapp

1) On the iPhone, it lets you know with a tick if your message has sent successfully, and a second tick indicates that the message has been opened and read by the person you sent it to
2) Cost - if you had to work out the cost, it is probably hundreds if not thousands of times cheaper than an SMS - depending on your bundle

I am on my way to the USA right now. Whatsapp will be my method of texting my GF back home, and Viber and whistle will be used for free phone calls, as long as I want, to S.Africa, using the hotels free wifi
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Here is a tip.

If you install Nimbuzz, you may be able to whisper sweet nothings too to your girl friend by calling her via the internet using the app.

I have not called anyone yet through Nimbuzz by the function is always staring at me. I think you have to load some units or credit on it which I have no doubt would still be hundreds of times cheaper than calling via conventional cellular or telephonic means.
 
[QUOTE = SilverCode] On my n97 I normally get around 3.5 days of general usage on a charge. With WhatsApp installed, that went down to 1 day, and I didn't even really use it that much (just had it running in the background). Never bothered trying to turn off 3G or anything, so can't comment on if that helps. Uninstalled it after a couple days because of poor battery life and no need for it.
and
QUOTE=Goedgedacht;6116252]That was my experience as well.[/QUOTE]

Try making sure that you exit apps everytime you are finished with them.

Running apps in the background chows battery life because you will be online if an app that uses internet is running.
 
isie said:
You are peny wise but pound foolish - the cost on recieveng and sendingon whats app is so minimal compared to just sending just 1 sms, i pay for 2 phone bills (mines and my wifes) since we got whats app we keep in contstant contact but my phone bills have come down significantly.
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There is no cost in me receiving an SMS! I also get to see enough of my wife that not keeping in contact with her during the day is worth the so called saving your punting.
 
cbrunsdonza said:
There is no cost in me receiving an SMS! I also get to see enough of my wife that not keeping in contact with her during the day is worth the so called saving your punting.
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dude if you dont like talking to your wife thats your problem
anyway its a sugestion use it dont use it no affect on me
but like i said just becasue its cost to recieve its still cheaper then sending 1 sms
 
The advantage of SMS is that I can still get a delivery receipt and I use those for confirmation of receipt of my SMS, which is rather important for me. Apps like Whatsapp give no guarantee that the target device has received the message. In a social network enviroment this is not an issue as I would expect a user to be either using a PC, tablet, netbook, smartphone that is either theirs or somebody elses. For an SMS I might need, and do, to send an appointment reminder, a password, a confirmation message and I need confirmation that the target device has received it.

Whatsapp complements SMS usage and is not the killer of SMS.
 
cbrunsdonza said:
The advantage of SMS is that I can still get a delivery receipt and I use those for confirmation of receipt of my SMS, which is rather important for me. Apps like Whatsapp give no guarantee that the target device has received the message. In a social network enviroment this is not an issue as I would expect a user to be either using a PC, tablet, netbook, smartphone that is either theirs or somebody elses. For an SMS I might need, and do, to send an appointment reminder, a password, a confirmation message and I need confirmation that the target device has received it.

Whatsapp complements SMS usage and is not the killer of SMS.
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WhatsApp not only gives you a notification when the message has been delivered, but also a notification when it has been read.

Also, I'm not sure if this has changed, but I recall operators charging for delivery notifications.
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
WhatsApp not only gives you a notification when the message has been delivered, but also a notification when it has been read.

Also, I'm not sure if this has changed, but I recall operators charging for delivery notifications.
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Na, the second tick is only a delivery report (to the application), not a read report..
 
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