Tag: messaging

WhatsApp Messaging Service – Ads Are Coming.

Now Facebook-owned WhatsApp is one largest messaging platforms in use, touting an eye watering 1.5 billion monthly users. Its usage is near-ubiquitous in markets like India and Brazil where it is used for everything from delivery tracking to payments. Here in the UK it’s becoming an incredibly popular …

Russia to ban VPN’s and Proxies.

Russian President, Vladimir Putin, has now signed a law due to come into force in November banning technologies which allow users access to banned websites. These sites are on a list which has been created by the Russian government and extends to virtual private networks (VPN’s) and proxies. …

Google is shutting down Spaces: You know that thing

Are there any arguments left against the fact that Google’s messaging apps are a mess. They have a plethora of messaging platforms that perhaps even Google don’t know what do do with. Hangouts looks destined to be shuttered at some strange to be replaced by Allo on the …

When a WhatsApp group goes wrong

I’ve only got myself to blame for getting into this and I’ve only got myself to blame for not quitting. In the world of social media marketing, companies are taking all sorts of novel steps to grasp our attention. It seemed like an interesting idea at the time, …

Virgin Media goes 4G. Adds free WhatsApp and rollover data

If you’ve got Virgin cabled up to your house then it’s in your own interests to look at their mobile deals too. They have better deals for Virgin customers, but you can also take a look at their offerings if you’re not a customer. Better still, today they’ve …

Protecting your teenager against sexting

When I was in my teens, smartphones weren’t really a “thing”. Sure, we had mobile phones, but they were big clunky things and you couldn’t even text on them unless you paid for the texting “service”. Plus, they were pretty much confined to older people, not “grandpa” old, …

Hello Google Allo

For some odd reason I’ve now got that Adele song stuck in my head. Y’know.. “Hello, it’s me I was wondering if after all these years you’d like to meet To go over everything….” That’s it. It’s stuck in your head now. In a few minutes you’ll be …

WhatsApp grabs one billion users

Well, personal experience already led me to think that WhatsApp was becoming pretty commonplace, but now we’ve got the figures to back it up. The messaging app now has one billion users sharing 42 billion messages per day, 1.6 billion photos and 250 million videos.   To get an …

WhatsApp becomes free a FreeApp

This is a messaging app which has become hugely successful. Most have installed it without considering the tiny cost which is levied after a year of use. Even with that cost, it’s still way cheaper than sending video and pictures through MMS. Now the owners of WhatsApp, a …

IFA – The Triby kitchen messaging system goes on sale

The connected fridge-magnet notification system known as Triby has appeared yet again. This time we’ve got some pricing, with Amazon offering it for $199 with deliveries beginning on October 30th. Here in the UK, although that works out at around £132, it’s £159 on Amazon.co.uk, but you can …

Latest update to Hangouts brings new features.

Today Google revealed the latest update to their own messaging app, Hangouts. The update sees the addition of 16 sticker packs, new video filters for calls, the ability to add contacts with their phone number, smart location suggestions and a “last seen” timestamp that shows you when your contact …

WhatsApp – Highs and lows in one month

Not that we wouldn’t pay attention to one of the most popular messaging mobile applications in the world today, but there’s been a lot more attention placed upon it recently since Facebook snapped it up. Those who were concerned about privacy have been trying out a number of …

Android / iOS BBM release date set for this weekend…

Blackberry were once a major player in the smartphone world. Their devices allegedly played a major part in the orchestration of the London riots via the use of the secure Blackberry messenger platform and now users of iOS and Android can rejoice for finally BBM is coming to …

Google Hangouts – now featuring SMS?

The dust is settling after the rather long keynote at Google I/O yesterday and as things start to rollout we can start to examine things in a little more detail. One of the big enhancements to the Google ecosystem is the rehashing of Google Hangouts. This unification of …

WhatsApp for Windows Phone gets an overhaul

WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps available. It’s a great way to chat to friends and share images, audio and pictures completely free (as long as you’re connected to wi-fi): therefore it’s great to see such a major update to the Windows version of the …

Blackberry services down? – Resolved

Reports around this morning that the BT network has failed nationwide and by extension, so have the Blackberry services. This effects messages, email and internet. It’s not clear what has happened but we have a few Blackberry devices that are showing signs of this. Is your blackberry misbehaving? …

Just how quickly can you text?

This 17-year old chap is called Austin Weirschke from Queens. The New Yorker has received a cheque for $50,000 after becoming the fastest texter in America. Austin won the LG-sponsored competition after having to memorise and type phrases on a sliding QWERTY phone. He also had to type …

Viber comes to Android

Viber, the free VOIP and messaging service has finally hit the Android market. The app has been available on iOS for a while now and allows you to make free calls over 3G and WiFi as well as send free texts. The app features some nice integration with …

Coolsmartphone Recommended App: LiveProfile

LiveProfile is a device-to-device messaging app for Android, iOS, and Blackberry. It works on a similar basis to Blackberry Messenger, whereby you are required to create an account and then you are assigned a PIN. Other LiveProfile users who have your PIN can become friends with you, and …

More on the Facebook phone – Blackberry killer?

After yesterday’s rumours of Facebook phones, more information is coming out. BGR have a tipster that was part of a focus group for what could be the Facebook phone, with more details of what could be in store. The phone will be cloud based and location aware – …