Communication is a pivotal aspect of our everyday lives, both in the workplace and in our personal lives. In the twenty-first century, there are more ways available to communicate than ever before thanks to the Internet. Although, as hard as it is to believe, the Internet is still a young invention and the products designed for it are literally evolutionary in the sense that they change and adapt constantly to new trends and discoveries. As a result, there are hundreds, thousands of services and applications we can use to communicate with each other.
I have stumbled across a single communication platform that exceeds the standards of any other application I’ve used before: Telegram. And guess what? I’m about to tell you why it’s a useful way to communicate over other traditional means.
The case against SMS
In terms of traditional communication, SMS, MMS, or text messaging (whatever you might prefer to call it) is obviously one of the most dominant forms of instant communication. However, in terms of a modern communication platform, it has several flaws that make it difficult to use effectively for effective communication. So, why not SMS?
Domestic and international costs
This one simply speaks for itself. Text messaging has long been an expensive form of communication in terms of paying per message or having a cap to work around. While this is beginning to change for domestic messaging, it is certainly not the case for international messaging. As a result, most domestic communication is likely using another form of messaging (even if it’s disguised to look like regular SMS, such as iMessage), and international communication rarely, if ever, considers using traditional SMS. In terms of either saving your wallet or preventing paranoia from going over a cap, SMS is not a cost-effective solution for communication.
May your carrier have mercy
Mileage may vary with this, but often times, how reliable your carrier is leaves you subject to the stability of their network and whether or not your hardware is compatible. In my case, I am a proud owner of an HTC One M8 running CyanogenMod 12.1, but Sprint has granted me the privilege of having a nearly dysfunctional networking capability on their cellular network. A challenge I have had to face my entire time on Sprint is traveling through an area that clearly has coverage, such as New York City, without being able to use any networking capabilities on my phone. I have had to quietly enter a coffee shop just for free WiFi when traveling far… far too many times.
This is an issue I intend to resolve next upgrade… or maybe next carrier… but point and case being, using SMS / MMS for communication is only as reliable as your carrier allows. There’s no guaranteed way to make sure receipt of your messages, and now I can never be sure if an unreturned message is from lack of interest or lack of receipt.
Why Telegram?
With that out-of-the-way, I can focus on the main argument I want to present. So of all the different communication platforms available, why use Telegram? What makes it different from everything else and how is it better?
Multi-platform
This is always the first thing that I notice is that Telegram supports just about everything… literally. From iOS to Android to Windows Phone to Windows desktop app to OS X desktop app to Linux desktop app to Firefox OS to a web platform and more, it’s hard to think of something you can’t use Telegram on… except maybe a brick phone from the early 2000s.
The benefits of Telegram’s multi-platform availability is that it makes it easy for your friends or co-workers to get it running quickly and easily on whatever it is they use. As a Linux user, I was particularly pleased to see the beautiful design of the desktop app, something that is sometimes a rare sight when using software outside of your distribution’s packages. Additionally, since I use a computer far more often than my Android (maybe for the reasons mentioned earlier), having a desktop app is a great convenience for me and makes it easier for me to keep in touch with my friends, family, and other contacts without having to keep my phone out next to my laptop too. That might sound silly, but it’s the way I work personally – which only goes to show that whether you’re someone like me who uses a computer more than a phone, or if you use a phone more than a computer, Telegram will fit your own habits.
Try to find a device made in the past two years that can’t use Telegram one way or another!
Fast and reliable
Speed is always nice when it comes to instant messaging, and if you’re having a back-and-forth conversation with someone, you want your messages to send quickly and reliably. The overall speed of Telegram is near flawless, and it honestly is right on-par for speed expectations for any messaging platform available in 2015.
Not only is it fast, but it’s also reliable. You’ll know instantly if your message delivered successfully by a check mark next to your message once you send it. If the person you are talking with hasn’t disabled them, you will also receive read receipts for when they have read your message. This makes communication consistent and reliable, and whether or not your message is received by your contact isn’t something you’ll have to worry about.
Secure
Finally, Telegram is also a platform you can trust. On the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Secure Messaging Scorecard, the platform as a whole receives a 4/7 and the secret messaging feature receives a perfect score of 7/7. It’s a non-commercial product that has high value in privacy, something that is respectable and admirable in the current day and age.
Get Telegram today
It actually feels super cheesy to use that action line, but I honestly love Telegram. Ever since I originally installed it from the recommendation of one of my own friends, I am always amazed by the quality and availability of Telegram as a messaging platform. It makes it easier to keep in touch with family, friends, co-workers, fellow students, and all of my contacts. It has definitely become a staple of my everyday communication, and I sincerely recommend it not as trying to hook you on it, but as a fellow member of the sometimes overwhelming digital world in which we live.
Hopefully you will find Telegram as useful as find it.