WhatsApp is a messaging app for smartphones. It is a subscription based app, i.e., it is available as a free app for first year and then it charges $0.55 for subsequent years. This app uses the Internet to send text and multimedia messages. It was established in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, which were both employed by Yahoo, but was subsidized by Facebook in 2014 for 16 million USD. The application was launched in 2009 for the iPhone only, but subsequently was made available on Symbian OS, Android etc.

Features of WhatsApp

WhatsApp is the highest used messaging right now with an estimated 800 million users worldwide. It offers the maximum number of features available for any possible messaging app. The main features of WhatsApp include-

  • Sending multimedia messages which include pictures, videos, audio messages, etc. It also allows you to share your location with your friend via GPS.
  • Recently launched feature of WhatsApp, calling has added another dimension to this app. This eliminates the use of using your conventional way of making a call and enables you to call any friend (also on WhatsApp) using the Internet.
  • Some of the other lesser known features are backing up your conversation which can help you back up any particular conversation you want for future reference.
  • It also has a feature of sending a particular conversation to a third person by email.
  • Even after you change your SIM card or number, WhatsApp has a feature to migrate your account to the new number entirely therefore keeping your chat history safe.
  • One of the commonest and most used feature is the groups. It has a maximum capacity of 100 right now. This helps people to form different groups for keeping themselves updated on every information.

What is WhatsApp?

WhatsApp just like a social networking app also helps you to show your moods by putting up a status. It also boasts of having one of the largest emoticons databases. Another lesser known feature is the message Broadcasting. This feature enables you to send or broadcast a message to a number of people simultaneously. Statistically, every 10th person in the world has a WhatsApp account. Even in India it was calculated that 70 million people are active on WhatsApp on a regular basis. It is undoubtedly the most used messaging apps right now and the chances of any other app overtaking it in the near future are very slim.