Is it over for SMS?
It seems like that!
Me to my little cousin: “What do you use SMS for?”
C: You mean iMessage?
Me: No. Normal Text over cellular.
C: OTP?
Me: Ok it’s dead!
Do you agree with me that SMS looked good on 16bit screens? We didn’t have threads in the early 2000’s. Every message was on it’s own. The Inbox used to be full in about 5 days. So there is literally nothing meaningful there. There used to be a saved messages folder, a sent messages folder and an outbox. Was it email? I guess it was the same layout but for 160 chars. Or was it 180? I don’t remember as if now. Anyway if your message was long it would be chopped into parts and some parts may not be received.
*some texts missing*
Only 90’s kids will get this.
And oh yeah, the delivery reports were in the form of an Sms message. Ya no blue ticks.
But the wait for a reply was real. The joy it gave when you heard the double beep on a Nokia. Priceless!
Last seen, Online, Blue ticks etc have created an alternative perception on messaging. It was the best with a twist of suspense!
The internet has changed a lot of things. Products, services and even the phone itself. Yes it’s easy to Whatsapp someone and get a reply immediately. But do you ever wonder why some texts go un replied? People are reluctant to send an sms. There is no depth or value in it. It’s more of like an alternative platform that you use in case your messages aren’t going over WhatsApp or iMessage.
I’m ignoring Android over here because either Google developers are busy with some other important work or there is a licensing issue. Remember Google Allo? I was so waiting for it to be the default SMS app. But that never happened did it? Google has a habit of making awesome products and killing it. It’s like they find some joy in doing that. RIP INBOX!
Last night I was thinking about the next service waiting to be phased out. Will SMS be fully obsolete? Carriers can always deliver your OTP by a flash message, most apps have already been integrated with WhatsApp, like BookMyShow/RedBus etc. How long do you think network providers will keep SMS alive? Next 10 years? 20? What’s your take on this? Let me know in the comments.
