Due to these limitations, and advancements in social media, new trends are being set and Alternatives of SMS are snatching its position. As Messaging Apps are time efficient and money saving, because they don't charge for messages, so they are used more than SMS nowadays.
Following is a list of apps that can serve as alternatives of SMS:
1- Whatsapp:
Whatsapp is recently the best and most used alternative of SMS. Whatsapp, in its beginning years, charged $0.99 annually after giving one year of trial service. But in the beginning of 2016, it has announced a free lifetime service. It features Instant Messaging, Group Chats, Photos, Audio and Video sharing, A large collection of emojis. Moreover, Whatsapp conversations are end to end encrypted. Hence, there are many features that make Whatsapp stand #1 in the ranking.
Also Read: Whatsapp Encrypts User Conversations
2- Facebook Messenger:
Facebook, being the largest social network, launched its messenger app in 2011. Using messenger was optional until the version 7 of Facebook App was launched. Messenger features Group Calling, Video Calling, instant Messaging, Group Chat, Photos and Video Sharing, Location Sharing.
3- Viber:
For fun adding, Viber has Emoticons and Stickers. Its doodle feature lets draw on screen and send it to their contacts.
4- Line:
Line, first launched in Japan in 2011, reached 100 million users in just a span of 18 months. In the beginning of 2016, it had almost 700 million users. Line encrypted user conversations in October 2015.
It is a multi-faceted app having features of Texting, Video and Voice Messaging, Social Media Elements such as Games, Group Chats and Personal Timelines.
5- Hangouts:
Hangouts requires android 4.0 and later to be installed.
All the above apps have mutual features of texting, audio and video calling, etc. But accessibility and ease of use makes the priorities in list of these apps.
