About this write-up:
Mobile phones have pervaded almost every aspect of our life, be it in the personal space or in the work environment. This is true in so many ways. For instance, most people shudder at the very thought of what would happen if their mobile phone stopped working or was not with them, even for a single hour or a day . There are several reasons for this and mobile apps have made a sizeable contribution in this regard.
While there are several apps which are capable of a variety of functions such as downloading information, music, video, storing and sharing, etc., one of the most notable category of apps which has really improved the user experience are the instant messaging apps. These apps have changed the landscape of mobile telephony and messaging. Google Hangout is the latest entrant in this arena.
This write up briefly describes some of the features / capabilities and how this app would be useful to the readers of this magazine.
Introduction:
Mobile phones have pervaded almost every aspect of our life, be it in the personal space or in the work environment. So much so that most people find it difficult to imagine what would happen if their mobile phone stopped working or was not with them, even for a single day. There are several reasons for this and mobile apps have a sizeable contribution in this regard. There are several apps which are capable of a variety of functions such as downloading information, music, video, storing and sharing all these. However, one of the most notable categories among these apps, which has really improved the user experience is the category related to instant messaging. These apps have changed the landscape of mobile telephony and messaging.
Instant messaging apps started off with a basic text option, gradually moving on to audio and now finally, they have started offering video options also. This write up briefly describes some of the apps and highlights the features of the latest entrant on the scene i.e. Google Hangout.
Background:
Some of you may recall, just about a decade ago (2000 – 2003 types) the closest thing we had to instant messaging back then, was ICQ chat or the Yahoo Messenger or the AOL messenger. These were quite popular and hip. But when you think about it in hindsight…there was a catch… all of these applications were built for desktops/laptops. Ergo, these apps were instant only when you were in front of a PC. But that’s how technology was back then and most people found it useful. As a matter of fact, there are still remnants of those days i.e. Google Chat and Yahoo Messenger are still in use (am not saying popular). In most cases, they have been merged with the email account.
At that time, mobile apps were non-existent at that time. This was partly due to the fact that owning a mobile phone was a luxury for many Indians. Mobile technology was in its nascent stages and quite expensive. The closest thing available to instant messaging back then was the Short Messaging Service or as it was popularly called SMS. But those days were different. Back then, SMSes were either free or used to cost a pittance (at least as compared to the cost of a voice call). But like all good things, like the telegram service and before that the pager service, SMSes too are fast becoming a redundant mode of communication. While this may seem abrupt to many, it isn’t so. Read on to know why
The beginning of the end of text messaging:
One of the first nails in the coffin was put in by the Blackberry Messenger Service (“BBM”). Back in 2006, Blackberry devices (“BB”) were a rage. Then, in 2007-08 (approx), the BBM service was launched. The instant messaging landscape changed completely soon thereafter. By 2010, the popularity of BB and the BBM scaled new heights. And rightly so. After all it was easy to use, instant and most importantly free of cost (i.e. not counting the cost of the BB and the data plan).
At that time, BBM had no competitors. There was a huge void between the BB and all other devices (mainly Nokia, HTC, Sony, Motorola). BB was riding a high. However there was one downside (at least for the users) – the catch was that you needed to own a Blackberry device. That itself was not a small catch, given that each BB device would cost near about 18k plus was a major limitation.
Near about that time Google Talk made its advent. While there were early adopters, reports in the public domain suggest that Google Talk didn’t really dent BBM’s hold on the market. There were several reasons for this. Some of which could be listed as under:
• Available smart phones (not very smart, really speaking)
• Supporting operating system
• (most importantly) Availability of bandwidth (i.e. ability to access internet through the phone).
I know there was Wi-Fi, but come on … really… the users would be able to access Wi-Fi at limited placed… is that really mobile.
Near about that time, a series of products’/services’ launches were announced. Some of the notable ones are:
• Launch of the iPhone 3, 4 and 4S
• Use of 3G & 4G technology
• Itunes and the app market created around the iPhone ecosystem
• The Qwerty keyboard lost its defacto status of standard interface to the touch based interface (no pencil required, as in the case of Palm and i-mate JAMin)
• Apple announced Siri – the new revolutionary voice based interface.
While these changes happened over a period of 3-4 years, in this time period BB slowly and steadily started losing its grip on the smart phone market. With it, BBM started losing its relevance as an instant messaging app.
iOS and Android ecosystem:
With the launch of the iPhone (iOS) and the Samsung S series (Android OS), there were two basic expectations of the customer i.e. easy internet connectivity and newer offerings in the form of apps and utilities. BB and Nokia had taken for granted their position and failed to innovate. What they missed was capitalised upon by Apple and then by Samsung. Their phones and the operating system started behaving like hosts capable of doing a lot more/beyond a simple phone, camera, music player, email, games offering etc. The phones offered a lot more interactivity and options to share.
Instant messaging:
Instant messaging was a part of the mobile telephone ecosystem from early 2000. It was a hit back then, mainly on account of the pricing differential and the convenience it offered. But as they say, time and tide waits for no one and the only thing permanent is change. With newer technology such as 3G, 4G, WiMax, LTE, etc, users had the chance to use media with richer features/content like images, short audio files and video. The type of files which in the past were not used because of the time taken to upload and download. The need of the hour was the development of apps that would piggyback on the cheaper internet technology (whilst avoiding the more expensive telephone option) and give the users a similar (in many cases better) experience. In the initial phases, developers focussed on developing apps which would allow the users to send SMS via the internet. While these did catch on, they didn’t really become mass products or a rage, as there were several limitations. Already the users were habituated to using software like Skype, Google Talk for online chats (audio as well as video) with developments like the iOS and the Android ecosystem, stripped down versions of these instant messaging software packages started entering the market.
Even these did not (really speaking) really achieve the lofty position of becoming the defacto standard (Skyype did have a hold but …). Part of the reason was that these software packages (not apps) were resource hungry and demanding. Add to this, there was a need for heavy bandwidth.
I did try using Skype on my i-mate JAMin (2006-09) but was terribly disappointed. Was forced to uninstall Skype after two attempts to use (and several attempts to stop my phone OS from hanging).
What this meant for an ordinary user was that not only did you need a very high end phone, you needed a robust operation system and the broadband network for effective usage (similar to a desktop environment). That’s when apps like Whats App, Viber, etc. entered the market. These apps were game changers.
My next write up will carry more information on why these apps became game changers and what were the reasons for the same.
Until then…. cheers
Disclaimer: The purpose of this article is not to promote any particular site or person or software. Further comments about various products and services are based on the user experience related information available in the public domain. There is no intention to malign any product or service in any manner whatsoever. The sole intention is to create awareness and to bring into limelight some thought provoking content.
