Is Telegram giving WhatsApp a run for their money? Whatsapp is a well-known messaging application from the Zuckerberg empire. You use it, your mom uses it, your dad, your aunt, and even your grandma use it. Whenever our parents would tell us a new tip or superstition, we already know they saw it on WhatsApp; how? Because everyone uses it! As of January 2021, the data shows that there are currently 46 million social media users in Pakistan; this number is predicted to increase to about 50 million by 2025!

What if we tell you there’s a new competitor in the game. Telegram -Telegram is a messaging application introduced in 2013. With mobile and web optimization, if anything can compete with WhatsApp, it’s Telegram. 

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Telegram Background

Telegram was launched on August 14, 2013, by Pavel Durov. This application was available for access on all platforms on August 31, 2013. The idea behind the formulation of Telegram was to create an unhackable messaging application. As of 2021, Telegram has 550 million users worldwide and is ranked 10th as the most used social media application, with the numbers still rising. In the first quarter of 2021, a telegram had 64.24 million downloads across Asia. 

In Pakistan, Telegram gained fame for its bots, security, and privacy. It introduced many features, which are not available on WhatsApp; multiple platforms, payments, music, editing messages after they are sent, and more. 

Whatsapp Background

The well-known Whatsapp was founded by Jan Koum and brian action and launched in February 2009. it reached Pakistan in November 2009. Whatsapp is the third most used application worldwide. In 2021 WhatsApp’s user base in just South Asia was estimated to be 640 million users. In 2020 WhatsApp had 46.2 million users in Pakistan.

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10 Reasons Why Telegram is Better Than WhatsApp?

As the generation becomes more tech-savvy, the need for additional features in their social media applications rises. Switching between apps seems easy, but if you have slow internet or have to meet a deadline its feels like a chore. Everyone looks for that one messaging app that has everything in it, where you can chat, share, call and even enjoy on your own.

We are here to tell you what that app is and why it’s telegram?

Security and PrivacyEncryption, secret chat, proxy support

Encryption 

MTPro is the encryption protocol developed by Nikolai Durov and other developers; made for telegram, this provides telegram with two-layer encryption. Their competitors do not have this encryption.

Secret Chat

Secret-chat is one of the features only available in telegram. This feature gives the user end-to-end encryption with a self-destructing timer -that is set by the user. After the timer ends, there will be no trace left of the chat. Furthermore, while in the secret-chat mode, you cannot forward any messages.

Proxy Support 

Telegram provides built-in proxy services; most of the features in many apps; are banned in Pakistan, and many applications are entirely banned. This feature allows you to change your IP to international and access restricted features. A proxy is similar to a VPN but not as safe and should only be used: if the user knows what they are doing.

Edit Sent Messages

If you have ever sent a message which you did not mean to or spelled something wrong, now you don’t have to unsent the entire message. Telegram has the feature of allowing for texts to be edited after they are sent. This feature is applicable in all chats and chat rooms.

Unlimited Server Storagedata loss, mobile phone, telegram app

Data loss is possible on WhatsApp when you change your phone or number even if you made the slightest wrong move, you need to backup your data every day, every week, or whenever you schedule it. On many phones, you cannot use WhatsApp while it’s backing up either. Your chat and media backup from WhatsApp is stored on your phone, using more storage.

Telegram saves your messages, images, videos, and all other types of media and documents on their cloud. Your data is not lost unless deleted from the chat. You can log in or log out from any console as many times as you want: your data will not be lost. You don’t have to worry about backing up your chats or media. 

Media Compressiondata transmission time, bandwidth, faster compression

Telegram by default supports compressed Media (example: images, videos). When you send compressed files, the communication is faster due to reduced communication bandwidth and reduced data transmission time. This means that the system has to work less to send the media to the receiver compared to sending an uncompressed image. However, Telegram does offer to be able to send uncompressed files as well.

Group Member Capacityonline group chats, chat rooms, communities

Groups and channels are becoming more common worldwide, especially in Pakistan, since the pandemic. More people became part of online group chats, chat rooms, and communities. Telegram realised this and updated their group member capacity to 200,000 members per group, whereas WhatsApp still offers only 256 members per group. 

Related: TikTok surpasses Facebook as the most downloaded app in the world

Username FeaturesTelegram, Whatsapp features, telegram features

When you use WhatsApp, your number is available to whomever you message. If you meet a stranger and want to communicate with them over WhatsApp, you would have to exchange numbers, which has not been possible for the past two years. Telegram eliminates the need for exchanging phone numbers.

Telegram’s username is another feature to protect the user. By using this, you can find new people and communicate with them without revealing your phone number. You simply have to search the username; and change it, as well. 

Channels channels, whatsapp groups, telegram channels

Channels are a feature that is Telegram exclusive in this comparison. Whatsapp does not have this feature. Channels are similar to groups. But they are not limited to 200000 members. Telegram has unlimited members. Some admins and moderators look over the channels.

The admins of a channel can change group info, change the group name, edit messages, delete messages, add subscribers/members, and more. Your channel can be public or private: you can set your channel to allow anyone to access it or only allow specified users to access it.  

Multiplatform Support

One of the main drawbacks of Whatsapp is its desktop user interface; it does not allow calls or video calls. You do not receive notifications on your phone if you log in on the web. The background for chats doesn’t show and you cannot log in if you do not have your mobile on you. 

Telegram gives you the option to access your account via your number or username and use a password, you can log in anywhere at any time. All of your chats and media will be readily loaded; since the cloud saves it. You can log in to multiple devices at the same time. 

Data Consumption Telegram or WhatsApp, cellular data, call recording

If you use Telegram or WhatsApp using cellular data. It is noticeable that Telegram runs faster than WhatsApp; why is this? Because Telegram consumes less data. However, the variation is not noticeable unless you run both applications on the highest performance and then record. 

In the highest settings, WhatsApp uses a lot more data than Telegram. In some comparisons, it’s almost twice as much!

Read more: 10 easiest ways you can do to gain more followers on TikTok

BotsTelegram bot API, VKM Bots, messaging app

Bots are small programs; that do the works for us. Developers can make bots for Telegram using the Telegram bot API. Bots can fetch information, reaction, or media for us. Bots can do specific data if we cannot remember the name. 

For example, you want to listen to a song, but you only remember the name and cannot remember who sang it (the song has a common name). You will enter the name into the VKM bot; it will suggest the top results for the song you might be searching for; You can select Its number on the list and play it. 

Similarly, Telegram has bots for pictures, memes, gifs, facts, trivia, and more. 

Customization open API, In-app browser, image editor

Telegram allows its users to have their choice of themes, making it unique for every user. They also have custom stickers that were missing on WhatsApp till a few months ago. 

Other features that are available on Telegram are;