WhatsApp is one of the most popular mobile apps and possibly the most popular mobile messaging app in the world.
The app officially came into existence in 2009 and was purchased by Facebook for $19 billion. Facebook still owns the app up to today.
The app boasts over 2 billion monthly users and is present in almost every country globally. The app is available on both Android and IOS operating systems. It is also available on Windows mobile devices.
This makes it stand out as the best-used messaging app in the world. The app started primarily as a messaging app but now includes several features as well.
The app is also totally free to download on the Google play store or the IOS app store. WhatsApp allows you to call and message people. You can also send media such as pictures and videos, documents, and pdfs to people on the app.
Although it may be a top-rated app, there may still be some people who do not know much about the most popular messaging app in the world at the moment. Here is all that you need to know about WhatsApp.
Table of Contents
What is WhatsApp?
WhatsApp is a peer-to-peer messaging app that you can use to make voice and video calls. These calls can even be made to people outside your country of residence without any charges at all.
Users can also send documents of all types as well as pdf to people on the app. The app is free as users do not have to pay fees or charges to use it.
The app makes use of your internet connection to send your messages to people. The app uses the phone number of your friends to message them instead of usernames like Facebook does with Facebook Messenger.
This means that person who has the messaging app on their smartphones and has your contact number can message you.
Apart from messaging individuals, you can also form groups on the app to hold group discussions. The app also has end-to-end encryption security that prevents third parties from viewing your messaging activities. This also means WhatsApp itself cannot see or read your messages.
Customization
Users can also customize the app to their liking in several easy ways. You can select a separate ringtone for each person on your contact list. Dark mode can now also be activated on the app to avoid strain your eyes when using the app in dark areas.
You can adjust the notifications to suit how you want them. You can mute some chats that you do not like getting notified about anytime they send a message.
You can also block contacts that annoy you on the app so that those contacts will not be able to send any messages again.
You can also unblock such contacts later in the settings menu when you feel like you want to do so later.
You can set your wallpaper to choose from the default one that came with the app to make your chat look more beautiful. All these can be done from the settings menu.
Privacy
Although the app is probably one of the most secure messaging apps out there, there will undoubtedly be some information like your profile photo, profile name, and your ‘about’ that all contacts who have your number on WhatsApp can see by default.
However, you can change these to determine which category of people are allowed to view such information.
You can change these settings to either public or contacts only, making sure that only WhatsApp users who have saved your contact will be able to view this information. You can also set Face ID as the means to open the messaging app to make sure that people cannot open the app in your absence.
You can also a passcode lock on the app with your smartphone.
Backup
You can backup your WhatsApp data to retrieve it if you lose your phone or get another phone, and you need to transfer the chats from your old phone to the new one. You can back up your chats to your phone storage, or you can back them up to cloud storage so that you can retrieve them on your new device.
You can also back up all media that has been sent to you on the app as well.
Account
In case you are fed up with using the app for whatever reason that only you may know, you can delete your account of the messaging app as well. However, none of your data will be saved when you do this.
If you have got a new phone and wish to have your WhatsApp on the new phone, you can delete the app from the old phone and then install it on the new phone. After you set it up, you should be able to get your old account back without starting all over.
However, you will still need to download your backed-up data onto the new phone to access your old chats from the old phone.
You can do all the things mentioned in this article in the settings menu of the app.
Now let’s cover some of the most popular questions about WhatsApp.
Do You Pay For WhatsApp?
WhatsApp is currently free to use. Although it was a paid app in its early stages, it is now free for everybody to use.
Why Use WhatsApp Instead Of iMessage?
There are so many features in WhatsApp that make the app one of the best to use.
I will choose WhatsApp over iMessage because of the features of WhatsApp. Such features are blue ticks, typing, status, privacy settings, and many more.
What Is The Difference Between WhatsApp And Regular Texting?
WhatsApp is a social media app, as compared to regular texting. WhatsApp also comes with features that are yet not available in the standard SMS.
The app makes it easy for you to connect with your loved ones all for free, but with regular texting, you need a credit or SMS bundle to send messages.
Another reason why WhatsApp is better than regular texting is that, on WhatsApp, you get to know when a person reads your message as compared to regular texting which you can not see if the person you texted has read or not.
Do You Need Internet For WhatsApp?
Before sending and receiving messages on WhatsApp, you will need the internet because WhatsApp uses data. Although we use our numbers to communicate on the app, you will need the internet before your messages can go through.
Types Of WhatsApp
There are two types of WhatsApp, and they are:
- Normal WhatsApp
- WhatsApp Business
Also, there is a moded WhatsApp version with unique features that are yet not on the official WhatsApp app. Some of these apps are:
- YoWhatsApp
- GB WhatsApp
- FMWhatsApp
If there is anything else you would like us to talk about in another article, please let us know in the comments.
