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Comment by adarsh_thampy | Hacker News Reader

I deleted my Facebook account more than 2 years ago. Installed Instagram to test what the fuss was about. But uninstalled it in a day.

The thing that's still Facebook and major part of my life is WhatsApp. Chit chats, group discussions, and calls with family back home all happen through WhatsApp.

Couldn't transition to other apps because most people in my family and friends circle don't really care about privacy or data security. They prefer convenience.

Without them switching, it's going to be hard for me to switch.

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> Couldn't transition to other apps because most people in my family and friends circle don't really care about privacy or data security. They prefer convenience.

What's wrong with phone calls and SMS? Granted they're not more secure, but at least they're not Facebook. I don't know any WhatsApp users, so I'm unaware of the advantage.

My social circles use it because it provides a consistent experience. Some have androids, and some have iPhones. When you have an all iPhone group chat, things work rather well. Liking different texts, animations, etc work well. But when you add a non-iPhone to the mix, the texts are sent sms-style, so you get messages that say "Sam liked X's comment!".

It's easier for everyone to use WhatsApp, because that platform provides a consistent experience. Also I can search messages in WhatsApp, I can't find this in iMessage.

Phone calls need to be in real time while Whatsapp chat can be read when you are free. Group SMS does not work because I am not aware of such functionality in Android.

During group discussions (like say planning a trip), we often share screenshots/images of hotels and other services for groups to vote on. These things are not possible with SMS or calls.

In India, most people I know have stopped using SMS altogether. Even I have stopped looking at SMS mostly because all the SMS I get is either an OTP (10%), a transactional message (10%), or a marketing message/SPAM (80%).

The last time I sent someone a personal message (or someone sent me one) using SMS was probably 2 years ago.

I've been happy as a clam to delete my Facebook and Instagram accounts over the last couple of years, and, like you, WhatsApp is a necessity. I spend 10+ months a year abroad, and WhatsApp has taken over as the default mode of communication. You don't ask for someone's phone number any more, you ask for their WhatsApp.

I wonder what it will take for WhatsApp to be dethroned? Perhaps a massive data leak, or proof that their e2e encryption has been knowingly compromised to gather data for Facebook advertising.

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