Have you been living under a rock and never used WhatsApp until now? You’re in the right place! I’ll explain all the advantages of using WhatsApp vs. a regular texting app.
Mainly, WhatsApp lets you:
- Text with friends for free
- Send photos, videos, GIFs, and emojis
- Communicate securely thanks to the end-to-end encryption of messages
- Delete messages you send
- Talk to anyone seamlessly, from anywhere, and on any OS
- Send voice recordings
- Make voice and video calls on the app
- Make chat groups
- And much more…
In a nutshell, WhatsApp is easier to use, more secure, and more expansive (in terms of features) than a regular texting app.
Below, I’ll go over the best WhatsApp features that don’t exist in the case of regular texting apps. Happy reading 😀
1. End-to-End Encryption
You must have heard this before – WhatsApp is simply more secure than other texting apps. But what exactly does that mean and why should you care?
You see, online data theft is a thing, and it can affect anyone in rather serious ways. Think of this – you’re giving your friend some banking information on a regular texting app.
However, a hacker intercepts your messages before they reach your friend and use the information within to steal your money or make subscriptions in your name. That’s not cool, right?
Well, WhatsApp does things differently. Its end-to-end encryption completely locks up both devices (the sender and the receiver) as well as the channel that the message travels through after being sent and before being received.
This means that NO ONE can intercept those messages while they are in transit. This makes end-to-end encryption incredibly useful and, some would say even necessary for all texting apps.
Regular texting apps don’t have end-to-end encryption, so they’re ripe for the picking of interested hackers.
2. Unlimited Free Messaging
WhatsApp is an online service, so as long as you have an unlimited data plan, the app is entirely free to use. There’s no premium subscription or anything like that.
No paid features, no hidden fees, nothing of that nature. The service is ENTIRELY free for everyone, all the time, and it’ll most likely remain free forever.
Regular texting apps function differently. They use SMS messaging that’s contained within your phone subscription.
These SMS messages are usually limited (meaning you’re limited to…500 messages per month, for instance). After you go over that limit, you’ll have to pay a fee for each message sent.
WhatsApp only requires an active internet connection. BUT if you have a limited data plan and you use WhatsApp too much, you may go over the limit, prompting you to pay additional fees.
Fortunately, most phone contracts today provide unlimited data because it’s super cheap and affordable. It’s extremely unlikely that you have a limited data plan but I recommend checking with your mobile provider to make sure.
3. WhatsApp Works on Any Device
WhatsApp will work on anything, including:
- Android phones
- iPhones
- Computers
- Laptops
- Macs
- Tablets
The OS also doesn’t matter (for the most part) and as long as you’re not using a super outdated phone, you won’t have any issues with WhatsApp.
This accessibility is one of WhatsApp greatest advantages because it connects people from around the world, across any device, seamlessly.
You could be talking from your Realme 8 with a friend who has an iPhone 8 living thousands of kilometers away, and it wouldn’t matter one bit.
WhatsApp will be just as crisp and responding as always.
On the other hand, regular texting apps are different on every phone, may not work the same on all devices, and are incredibly cumbersome to use. They’re simply not as advanced as WhatsApp.
4. Advanced Communication Features
A key feature of WhatsApp is that it’s much more than a messaging app. You can also send:
- GIFs
- Videos
- Photos
- Links
- Emojis
- Documents
- PDFs
- Voice messages
WhatsApp is a communication tool that incorporates much more than just text messaging. And even the text messaging aspect is much better managed than regular texting apps.
The app has voice recording features, and an in-app camera that you can use to take photos and shoot videos, and they’re all showcased properly on the chat.
WhatsApp has too many features that a simple texting app doesn’t have. Imagine that you can’t send photos, videos, voice messages, documents, GIFs, emojis, or PDFs on a regular messaging app.
Limited, right? Well, WhatsApp lets you do all that and it’s all free. What the hell is not to like?
5. Improved Socialization
Let’s make one thing clear – WhatsApp is NOT like Facebook or Instagram. It doesn’t have a feed, public or private posts, or anything of that nature.
It’s a messaging app, for the most part. However, you can make group chats and invite people to join. This is the maximum extent of socialization you can do on WhatsApp.
But, the truth be told is that WhatsApp group chats are incredibly handy, fun, engaging, and well-managed. Think of Discord servers or Telegram groups.
It’s the same thing, really. Every member can send photos, and videos, react to messages, and so on. It’s a step forward from talking to every person individually on a separate chat.
Naturally, regular texting apps don’t have group chats. They don’t even have regular chats in the proper sense of the word. All they have is SMS texting. Dull…
6. Delete Messages and Archive Chats
WhatsApp also lets you unsend or delete messages that you send. Maybe you sent a photo to the wrong person or you said something you shouldn’t.
If they haven’t seen the message yet, you can delete it from both sides and then they won’t see your message anymore.
Regular texting apps don’t let you do this. They’re just incredibly limited in this regard, whereas WhatsApp is more useful in this regard.
When you delete a message on WhatsApp, a notification will appear on the chat that you deleted something but the original message won’t be seen anymore.
You can also archive or delete chats, removing them from the main “Chats” page. This lets you become selective with your social interactions, in a way.
Archived chats won’t send you notifications the way that regular chats do. Instead, you’ll only see the notification when you open WhatsApp.
As for deleting a chat, it’s as simple as it sounds. Doing this will delete all the messages in that conversation (but only for you).
7. It Just Works…
This last point is a bit subjective (or not) but WhatsApp seems to just…work all the time. The messages are sent almost in real-time, the system is incredibly responsive, and everything is crisp.
Unlike regular text apps that may take longer to send messages, WhatsApp messages are sent almost instantly AS LONG AS you have a stable internet connection.
The other person also needs a good internet connection to receive your messages. But other than that, when it works, WhatsApp works excellently.
To Summarize: WhatsApp Is King
Yep, there’s really no comparison between WhatsApp and a regular texting app. There are so many extra features to WhatsApp that using your phone’s default messaging app seems almost insane.
Trust me, just try it and see for yourself. There’s literally no reason why you’d use a regular texting app over WhatsApp.
If you’re curious about something else related to WhatsApp, please ask me below and I’ll reply soon!
