Opinion
WhatsApp is without a doubt the king in any app store, but with each passing day, Telegram is getting closer to its direct competitor, and here we think this topic deserves some attention, so we'll help you decide which one of these apps is best for you, and to join your family and friends in endless online conversations. WhatsApp was created in 2009 by two former Yahoo employees, Brian Acton and Jan Koum, who decided to launch an application after realizing the potential of an application store, in this case the Apple store, the AppStore. So with the help of Russian programmer Igor Solomennikov, the application was launched in November 2009. In 2014 it was acquired by Facebook for the sum of 16 million dollars. Telegram, launched in 2013, is the creation of two Russian brothers, Nikolai and Pavel Durov, which despite having a slower growth, every day advances to become WhatsApp competition, having been considered one of the most acquired applications 2020, despite the fact that until today, after seven years, I have never spent a single cent on advertising. However, despite the origin of these applications being different, what matters are the features they can offer you. Security Both apps have encrypted messages and advanced privacy options, which is actually the most important thing. However, WhatsApp needs your mobile phone number, unlike Telegram. And Telegram can be used anonymously, which is not possible with WhatsApp. The new WhatsApp data policy has been shrouded in controversy, as the data acquired by the app is now distributed by the Facebook family, in order to improve the type of ads to be shown to each person. Telegram, on the other hand, has a data protection case at its foundation, as one of the founders, Pavel Durov, was fired from his duties as CEO of VK (Russian social network) after refusing to hand over data from Ukrainian demonstrators to security agencies. Russian security. Since this situation, the Durov brothers have started a self-imposed exile and have been great advocates against government interference in social networks. Features for messages Both applications show who is writing a reply, notify when the message is viewed, allow voice clips, allow two-way voice calls, show the last time the user was active, have the option to delete the message history, allow send current location, snooze notifications and show your current availability. On Telegram, you also have the option of sending a temporary message or image to your relative or friend's mobile phone, so that it is deleted, without you having the chance to save it. On WhatsApp, you can make video calls to up to 8 users, something that Telegram still only allows for 2 people. Contacts Both Telegram and WhatsApp integrate the user's existing contacts, however, to be able to send a message to someone on Telegram, both people must agree to stay connected, something that does not happen with WhatsApp, as it is only necessary to have the number of person's mobile phone so that they receive a message from you. Telegram also uses GPS to find out which of your contacts are close to you. Availability These applications are very similar, both available for Android and iOS, without ads, customizable, and available for PC, however, WhatsApp disappoints if you want to access WhatsApp Web, since to access WhatsApp on your computer, your mobile phone will need to be connected to the internet and linked to the PC, making this connection through a QR Code. Something that Telegram does at any time without the need for this connection. In general, these two applications are very similar, and WhatsApp is no longer on a podium isolated. With each update, Telegram grows and loses the weaknesses that still separate it from WhatsApp. The only thing that still does not let it grow is the group of friends of each one, since if we have our friends and family in an application, we tend to follow the majority, however it seems that we are going to have this obstacle less and less. By: Filomena Pires
