Posts Tagged
sms
Text messaging – or SMS – is one of the most fundamental functions on any mobile device. Over the last few years, it has arguably taken over voice calling as the single most used feature on a phone. Sure, there have been numerous threats from internet-based multimedia messaging apps like WhatsApp, Viber, Line and more, but the sheer ubiquity of good ol’ SMS text messages has been hard to beat and has kept the technology alive and kicking.
Surprisingly, there aren’t a lot of good dedicated options when it comes to SMS apps on Android. A few stalwarts like Handcent SMS and Go SMS Pro aside, competition has been pretty scarce in this arena. That’s why it’s exciting to see a new contender in Sliding Messaging. I took the app for a spin to check how it fared against Go SMS Pro – which is what I’ve been using for years now. Here’s what I found.
Over the past couple of weeks, there has been a lot of chatter about Google taking a step to unify their different messaging platforms into one. The rumors started solidifying last week, with screenshots and what seems to be a codename / final name: Babel. At the same time, we’ve also heard news that Google might be lining up to buy the popular messaging client Whatsapp, which was later denied by a spokesperson for the company. Then of course we saw the launch of Facebook Home along with its Messenger Chat Heads.
This whole “rush” towards messaging has us wondering about the platforms that you use to communicate with your friends and family. Are you still reliant on SMS? Have you moved towards traditional IM solutions like Google Talk or Facebook Messenger, or are you using the new solutions like Whatsapp, LiveProfile, and others? Or do you rely on a mix of services to connect with different people?
It’s no secret that I have a lot of devices at my disposal including phones, tablets, computers, and even Google TV. I like that pretty much from any place in my apartment — or office, or coffeeshop I happen to be working at — I can use any of those devices to do things like read, check the weather, or whatever Internet-based task I have to perform. However, when it came to texting I was locked down to using my phone for a long time; all of that changed with MightyText.
Since joining the Android family I’ve cycled through multiple programs for multiple functions. Each time I try a Web browser, for example, I always try to find another to see if it has that little extra something the current one lacks. I have been through several SMS clients, each with noticeable advantages and disadvantages. In this article, I’ve compiled five of my favourites, each accompanied by a short review.
Some people are okay with using the native messaging app on their phone, until better apps come along. When I first got my Android phone, I thought the bubble conversation style in the HTC Sense UI was cool enough. Then I discovered GoSMS Pro. The creative side of me went right to work and I customized to my heart’s content.
My colleague here at Appstorm, Sam Cater, wrote about the awesome features of this app a while back. I agree there are a great variety of features to explore in this app if you’re the kind of person who communicates more through SMS than through phone calls. Extreme customisation may be too much for some people, but for those who are into it, this app is perfect.
To get you started, here’s a compilation of quick customisations you can apply to GoSMS Pro.
We’ve all been there: we’re driving, in a meeting, or at a movie, and we get a text or a call. So we get on our phone, much to the dislike of those around us, to let the person on the other end know that we’re busy and we can’t talk right now (though to be honest, I think the point of a text message is to allow the recipient to respond when they can). This distracts the people around us: other drivers, movie goers, or meeting participants – and, quite frankly, it’s rude.
Luckily there are a ton of apps out there to help us with this problem. Today we’ll look at Away Text.
With three major social networks out there now (Google+, Facebook, and Twitter), I find myself explaining the difference between Facebook and the others more often than ever. How Twitter is best for real time sharing en masse; how Facebook focuses on personal relationships; and how Google+ allows you to create small communities out of the people you know for “know your audience”-style sharing.
Since Google+ entered the ring, Facebook has been feeling the pressure to step its game up. They launched video chat with Skype from within Facebook, no extras needed. Most recently, they’ve launched Facebook Messenger, an app that makes it easy to communicate with Facebook (and non-Facebook) friends to really build those personal relationships.
The default SMS applications on most Android phones are dry and lack features. They do what you need them to do and that is about it. GoSMS Pro is a feature-rich messenger replacement which aims to bring some extravagant touches to your texts.
The amount of features in GoSMS is more than what most people will need, and trying to identify and explain each one individually would be absurd. If I had to convey GoSMS to someone quickly, I would say it has depth that other applications (messengers especially) don’t quite reach. There is a level of customization offered that I have not seen replicated in any other application.
Call forwarding is the diversion of a call that Wikipedia defines as allowing “an incoming call to a called party, which would be otherwise unavailable, to be redirected to a mobile telephone or other telephone number where the desired called party is situated”. However, it’s a lot simpler than that sounds — basically, we’re talking about redirecting an incoming call to another phone number.
On Android, there are a couple of different ways that you can forward calls, including the ability to forward missed call information to an email address. This is especially useful if you left your phone at home before your commute to work, or if you just lost your phone but still want to keep on top of things. Let’s take a look at some applications to help in these situations. (more…)
There’s a number of times you might need send a polite hint that you’re busy. Say you’re watching a movie at a cinema and don’t want to break the unwritten rule against phone activity. Or you’re driving and don’t want to break the governed law of not texting whilst driving. However, it would still seem rude to completely ignore the sender’s attempts to get in touch with you.
Well, luckily you’re phone is smart. You can use a variety of applications to automatically respond to your messages noting your inability to respond. Bzzy is one of these applications that not only responds to text messages, but also counts how many you missed.
