Technology: 3 WhatsApp alternatives that you can try

WhatsApp, Hike Messenger, Facebook Messenger, WeChat

WhatsApp has announced that it will end support for certain smartphones and apps in 2017. While this may be a downer for some users, there is still hope. A look at 3 alternatives to the Facebook-owned instant-messaing client, according to The Quint...

Hike messenger: Touted as a Indian-made chat messaging client, and boasting of an userbase of over 100 million, Hike possesses interesting features such as, group audio calling, a Snapchat stories-like feature and Hike Direct. Hike users with Android (2.2+), iPhone, iPod Touch, Windows Phone, Nokia Asha Full Touch, Nokia S40 Non Touch and Touch & Type devices, S60 5th Edition, Anna and Belle devices, Blackberry devices (Including BB10), Nokia Android (Nokia X Dual SIM) contain Hike support.

Facebook Messenger: With a 1 billion userbase making it second to WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger's latest version supports iOS 8 and above on iPhones, Windows 10, Windows 10 Mobile, Windows Phone 8.1, Windows Phone 8 and above.

Pic courtesy/Jagran Post

WeChat: WeChat serves the purpose of Facebook, Uber, Paytm, Tinder and several other apps for users in China, with a userbase of around 700 million people in the country alone. According to an official statement by Tencent, the firm that owns WeChat, it supports iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Nokia S40, Symbian, BlackBerry OS 5.0, BlackBerry OS 6.0 and above, Blackberry 10, Windows, MacOS and on web browsers.

WhatsApp announced on a blog post this February that it would stop support for outdated or older OS platforms on Android and iOS and certain smartphones. However, the Facebook-owned instant-messing client has now announced that it will extend support for BlackBerry and Nokia devices, thus giving users extra time to update their devices to Apple or Android. (Read more)