Then vs Now: Texting #27

Photo by Alex Ware on Unsplash

I haven’t used all the messaging apps present in my Android but the few I used took all of my time and attention. Here I will mention the chatting apps that I have used for a long time and how it has changed over the years.

#1 The-old-as-fossil messenger/Texting without internet
Then: Until high school I didn’t have a smart phone. Messaging back then was pretty much costly (for me). Each message with maximum of 140 characters would cost Re 1/- . There were special tariffs or bonus cards to make messaging a little cheaper but I couldn’t afford that too. Because of size constraint my messages looked disgusting. The words did not have any vowels, grammar died a hundred deaths.
While shortening messages different people used to follow different strategy. So chance of misinterpretation and confusion was pretty high.
For example: Message was shortened as msg/mg. Height was shortened as h8 as so on.
Plus, I had to limit my conversation for perpetual low balance. There is no small talk, no exchange of pleasantries – just business.

Now: I receive only telecom operators message. The only time I need to send normal text message is when some application needs to verify my phone number.

#2 Extinct messengers like ebuddy, way-to-sms
Then: I was introduced with many of the messaging apps at the beginning of college, many of them are currently not functioning. It was way more fun for me then as for the first time my phone could connect to Internet and there was no constraint on the size of message.
I used ebuddy, way-to-sms etc. In way-to-sms the reception of message wasn’t guaranteed. I have no idea how many times it had killed a conversation that could change my life!
Now: I don’t know those messengers are anymore present or not.

#3 WhatsApp
Then: Within 1 month of buying a smart phone, I got to know about WhatsApp.
I don’t need to tell how it was or it is because it’s still evolving. But I can say how I used WhatsApp back then and now. At that time, I was such a person who replied within seconds. There was no scene of last seen for me. I was literally always online in WhatsApp. That was a golden time when I had ambiguous text status and nice display pictures.

Now: All I receive in WhatsApp now are some unwanted group messages. After graduation things have changed a lot. Neither blue ticks nor photo status excite me anymore. I haven’t updated my account since months.

#4 Hike messenger
Then: Though all of my friends were on other messengers as well, I forced them to download it because I found it funny. I was so insane that I even talked to the same person in different apps simultaneously.

Now: I don’t get any text on hike anymore. I get some system generated messages from the subscribed channels only.
[Edit : Hike messenger officially shut down in 2021]

#5 Facebook messenger
Then: I was hyperactive back in 2012/2013.
Now: I get random shits from unknown people that are sent in bulk when they click on any unsafe site or play games or something like that.
[Edit: It’s been more than a year that I haven’t used Facebook messenger. My dad would be the only person in my family to still use this app to catch up with his friends and extended family members!]

#6 Telegram
I have been using Telegram for 2 years now. The best thing about Telegram app is if I don’t wanna share my phone number and still want to chat, I can share my user id in Telegram. The chatting experience is decent.
However people sometimes search random names and can send you message. I used to get messages from random strangers all the time when I had my username same as my first name.

So as a final note I would say that WhatsApp is the only messaging app I have been using for the longest time. It has definitely revolutionized texting experience for us…

Thanks for reading! Check out my next blog here… 🙂