Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat that offers real-time text transmission over the Internet.
Instant Messaging applications are applications that make use of push technology to provide real-time text, which transmits messages character by character, as they are composed.
These messaging apps can be installed on a smartphone, laptop, and tablets after which you get to chat straight away.
Although these messaging apps have common features, it is important to acknowledge that they all have different features as well.
Instant Messaging Apps has made communication a lot easier, effective and even added more fun. Most instant messaging apps can send voice notes, make voice calls and even video calls.
WeChat, Whatsapp Messanger, Telegram, Facebook Messanger, 2go, Line, Viber, Slack, Blackberry Messanger, Kakaotalk, IMO, Skype, Snapchat, and KIK are a few of the common Instant Messaging Apps around. Although some of them seem to have gone extinct, yet we can not ignore the fact that some are still making improvements hence they remain very relevant.
The two Instant Messaging Apps to be discussed in this piece are Whatsapp Messanger and Telegram
Contrary to the popular misinformation, Telegram app was not designed in India. Telegram was launched in 2013 by Russian brothers Nikolai and Pavel Durov while WhatsApp was founded in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum.
They both have similar functionality features and these include the voice call which allows users to make calls at the cost of data instead of airtime.
Whatsapp Messanger and Telegram would be discussed under the following interesting points
- Business Model:
Whatsapp as a Facebook subsidiary charges a small fee for a year license while telegram runs on a kind of open source-alike model, based on donations and always free for the end user.
- Multiple device Access:
Whatsapp can be accessed from its web-enabled interface on chrome and opera and needs the phone to be on and connected to mobile data or wifi. This means for the web-enabled interface to work; the phone too must be connected.
Telegram runs on an installation-based cross-platform client and can be accessed from a PC or Tablet no matter which OS (Linux, Windows, iOS, Android) and no matter if your phone has no battery or data connection. This happens to be one of the advantages of Telegram over Whatsapp.
- Filesharing:
Telegram offers of up to 1g uninterrupted transfer between users. This implies that all forms of files, media, pdfs including Gifs and other documents can be transferred between users on telegram either from the SD card or computer’s desktop or folders.
Whatsapp allows less than 1g uninterrupted transfer of data between users and does not allow the transfer of Gifs.
- Secret Chat
Telegram allows a highly encrypted, end-to-end chat between users. In this secret chat, a user invites another user for a chat where messages are deleted after a selected period of time of being read without being stored on a cloud server.
- Welcome Notifications
While Telegram has a way of notifying users whenever any of their contacts activates their account, Whatsapp does not have this feature. This feature provides a kind of way to keep up with Old and new contacts.
- Groups
Whatsapp allows a maximum of 256 members in a group while Telegram allows 6000 in an ordinary group, 20000 in Supergroups and has a channel. Telegram channels take unlimited members for as long as possible and each post on a telegram channel has its own view counter.
Whatsapp groups only have an admin which can make other admins and only the admin can add members. Telegram, on the other hand, allows easier access by members. One other unique group feature on telegram is that it shows the number of group members online; a feature not accessible on WhatsApp groups.
- On-device Support
Telegram has an on-device support chat where developers answer any question or inquiry though not on Realtime basis but useful.
Whatsapp does not have these feature, instead, they outsource support to mobile carriers.
- Contacts:
WhatsApp has a tab for ‘Favorite’ contacts. This tab shows only the ones using WhatsApp – and another tab for all the contacts stored on the phone.
Telegram sorts both these contacts on the same screen but separates them by showing the ones with the app on top of others who don’t.
- Default options:
WhatsApp has a default status message: “Hey there! I am using WhatsApp.”
Telegram has nothing by default.
- Architecture:
Telegram makers are so confident about its security that they offer a $200,000 prize to anyone who can break into MTProto, the backbone of Telegram platform.
Whatsapp Security is nothing close to Telegram’s
- Status
This allows you to share text, photos, videos and animated GIFs that disappear after 24 hours. To send and receive status updates to and from your contacts, both users must have each other's phone numbers saved in your address book.
This is a feature that Telegram doesn’t have.
- Bots:
Bots are special Telegram accounts designed to handle messages automatically. Users can interact with bots using command messages in private or group chats. Bots are controlled using HTTPS requests.
WhatsApp doesn't have an open API or bot functionality.
These two Apps are the most popular Instant Messaging Apps. It is important to add that despite the bogus content of Telegram, Whatsapp seems to be more popular. Though they are closely identical in terms of functionality, yet they have quite a number of unique features.
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