Today, if you are going to send a message through your smartphone, you will surely do it through WhatsApp, the most downloaded instant messaging application today. But it is not the only option we have, since it is neither the one that works best, nor the one that offers you more options, and above all it is not the safest, although it improves in different aspects.
There are many alternatives to WhatsApp, and if you want to know it and try some of them today we are going to see the best options and analyze them a bit, so you can decide whether to give any of them a try. It is true that many do not yet have a significant number of users, but with a little time some of the ones we name will make real competition to the white phone on a green background from the Zuckelberg company.
And the best thing is that all the ones we see are free.
Telegram
The application that really competes with WhatsApp is Telegram, it is growing in number of users by leaps and bounds. With the latest failures of the application, the Facebook family benefited, since skeptics and people who did not yet know it gave it an opportunity to use it.
We have already talked about the Telegram application on different occasions, and its continuous updates and improvements makes it a very serious option to take into account. With this application we can carry out, among other options, secret chats that are encrypted in such a way that only members of the same can have access to it, you can permanently delete messages and schedule their deletion. Exchange files without worrying about their size, the images taken with your camera are of better quality and a long etcetera.
Another of its outstanding characteristics is that You can use it without giving your phone number to the other person, that is, with the username or nick you use, they can contact you, without having them know your number. You can create chats, broadcast groups, information channels with up to two hundred thousand members.
If you would like to You can create or use bots already created to manage these groups, with them you can inform, give instructions, or perform a series of acts for the correct operation of those chats, if you give it a chance and use it a little, you will see that it has a multitude of options for your enjoyment, even for work it can work very well.
Recently also video calls are available by Telegram and they are of a good quality also. By the way, although its Web version is not the best you can find, you should know that you will be able to access your conversations from your computer.
Messenger
Now we are going with this alternative from the hand of Facebook, it has been established for a long time in the great application of the social network par excellence, but With the passage of time it has improved a lot and offers us many alternatives in its use.
We can enjoy funny filters to change our face, backgrounds, etc. in addition to being able to chat with people with the option of providing our phone number, as was the case with the previous one. At our disposal we have a dark mode, instant greetings, and the option to invite other users to use Messenger.
As a curiosity there are a series of mini games with which we can play games with other users, and have a good time while having fun and we challenge them. Also enjoy the option of video calls, with up to fifty people and without a time limit.
Your independent use of Facebbok is a plus point, But by belonging to the family of this one, you will already know its security drawbacks and the data protection that it entails, even so it is a free and easy-to-use option. Do not forget that you can use it from your computer at any time, in the same way as on your mobile.
Of Chinese origin and the most popular in that country, it has very peculiar characteristics such as the option to integrate stories, as in Instagram that last up to 24 hours, they are like the status of whatsapp but with a different touch.
You can also create chat rooms with up to 500 members, and a series of mini games to pass the time. The most remarkable option of this messaging application is that It has integrated payments between users, something very useful if we want to pay gifts, dinners, or reservations of some kind between several users.
Perhaps the biggest drawback is that it weighs a lot, and it can take up a lot of space on our smartphones, and lately there are complaints of account cancellation for spending time without connecting and requesting a series of steps. I personally use it and I have not experienced that problem, but you are warned.
You have one web version, and the possibility of creating QR codes to send to the people you want to invite to a conversation in a direct and simple way.
Signal
Do you remember Edward Snowden? He was the one who leaked the espionage practices of the United States National Security Agency, and in its day recommended this messaging application as one of the safest in the current internet scene.
Signal is one of the safest because it uses an advanced Open source protocol with end-to-end encryption to keep your chats private. With this application you will not be able to configure privacy since it is the hallmark and the maximum of Signal.
Es very similar to WhatsApp, although with a different interface, and in security it is equivalent to TelegramIn short, you have in an application the simplicity of one and the security of another. However, its biggest problem is that not many people enjoy it on a regular basis.
Still has a very clear picture and sound with superb qualityIt is fast and even if you have little coverage, the messages usually arrive easily, you can even configure the auto-delete of messages at the moment you schedule it, something that helps the privacy of the content of your chats.
Confide
If privacy is your biggest concern with this application you have it solved, since no one will be able to see the messages on your screen if you don't click on the gray bar that appears on the screen. That is, if you receive a message, you will see a gray bar and not letters or the message from the other person, you must click on the screen and on that bar to be able to read the message.
With this you will avoid curious glances on your screen, and messages disappear forever once read so make sure you read it well. This is thanks to the end-to-end encryption that it houses, the best thing about this application is that the data and messages are automatically deleted when they are read, and they will not be able to access them thanks to the end-to-end encryption.
How you can see security is key to this application, to such an extent that you will not be able to take screenshots when it is working. With this we will avoid possible leaks of private conversations, and increase the control of our chats.