Facebook Messenger for Android Reviews

Facebook Messenger is one of the best ways to chat via text, SMS, video, voice or encrypted messaging, and there are tons of fun stickers available. Best of all, everyone you know probably already has an account.

Pros.
Universal adoption.
Excellent design.
Text, voice, SMS and live video.
Cute stickers.
Secure encrypted messaging mode.
Third-party app and chatbot support.
No Facebook account or phone number required.

Cons
Brings you closer to the Facebook ecosystem.
Limited file type support.

Even if the horrors of U.S. politics make you wary of checking your regular Facebook account, don’t underestimate the social network’s excellent Android messaging client, Facebook Messenger, an Android app that lets you chat via text, video, and voice, and can even do double duty as your default SMS client. A stunning array of stickers and the cleverly integrated Secret Conversations feature make it an Android Mobile Messaging Editors’ Choice Award winner.

You’re already signed up
Facebook Messenger is available for free in Google Play and I was able to easily load it onto my Nexus 5x. During setup, you’ll be prompted to enter a phone number and grant access to your contacts, but you can skip it if you don’t want Facebook to access this information. If you already have a Facebook account (and who doesn’t?), just sign in and you’re done. ), simply log in and you’re done. If you’re already signed in to the Facebook app, Messenger will automatically sign you in upon confirmation.

For some people, participating in any of Facebook’s offerings may not be possible. While you don’t need a phone number to use Facebook Messenger, you can register with a phone number instead of a Facebook account. However, doing so requires you to grant Facebook Messenger access to your contacts. This is true for most mobile messaging services. When I signed up for Messenger using only my phone number, it showed me a picture of a woman and asked if I was her. Apparently, the phone number she listed was the same one I was using. No worries; I clicked “No” and continued, but did not connect to Facebook.

One of the most difficult parts of any messaging service is finding other users. But because Facebook is so ubiquitous, most of your friends are probably already on it. Other messaging apps, especially those that are unassuming or security-focused, such as Editor’s Choice Award winner Signal, are a tough sell due to their limited user base. Considering that Facebook reports about 1.71 billion active users as of 2016, you probably won’t have this problem with Facebook Messenger.WhatsApp ($0.00 on Google Play), a popular messaging client since Facebook’s acquisition, also has about 1 billion users.

Standout Messenger
Facebook Messenger works on just about every platform you can think of, including the Web and Windows Phone.My review of Facebook Messenger for iPhone gave a thorough overview of each feature. I’ll summarize those here and then discuss Android-specific security and features.

My experience with Facebook apps has been generally negative. Politely, Facebook spin-offs like Rooms and Slingshot have been discontinued, which is confusing, and Facebook’s core apps are useful but overloaded with content. Facebook Messenger, on the other hand, is a high-water mark against which all Facebook apps, and perhaps all messaging apps, should be measured.

In addition to text, you can send audio clips, images, videos, and customized emoticons presented in a large format. But Messenger also allows you to send money through the service (provided you’ve entered a payment option), and there are thousands of cute, high-quality images called “stickers” to choose from. I’m a big fan of Pusheen and Business Fish images, but you’re sure to find something interesting to suit your preferences. It also integrates with third-party apps like Uber and Giphy. note that you can’t attach files directly, but you can share items through Messenger’s Dropbox integration.

If text chat isn’t your thing, Facebook Messenger also handles VoIP calls and live video chats very well. You can even hold group calls, but only via voice. If group video calls are a must, consider Google Hangouts or Skype (compare prices at Software Advice), both of which support up to 10 users. Facebook Messenger also allows you to create groups for persistent group chats using all the tools you’d expect.

Facebook Messenger also supports chatbots that you can chat with to get information or take action. They can be found in the Special Suggestions section that appears when you click on the search bar. I suspect this will gain a lot of traction on Android considering Google Assistant will certainly play a bigger role on the platform.Google Assistant gives you access to Google search results and some third-party interactions through the digital assistant. It’s more powerful and convenient than the third-party chatbots on Messenger. You can try it out for yourself in Google Allo or experience it integrated directly into the Google Pixel ($649.99 on Verizon) operating system. It’s hard to generalize what Facebook Messenger chatbots can do because every chatbot is different, and that’s a weakness of the service.

Is anyone listening?
Three years ago, Edward Snowden revealed the vast inner workings of the NSA’s metadata and electronic interception operations. Since then, the debate over who can access your messages and when has spurred the creation of numerous secure messaging services.

Recently, Facebook has addressed some of these privacy concerns through its Secret Conversations mode. You can enable this feature from the Settings menu and designate a phone as your default phone. That’s because messages sent in Secret mode are encrypted end-to-end; they can only be read on the device you send them to or receive them from, and neither Facebook nor law enforcement should see them.

Facebook has confirmed that normal messages sent through Facebook Messenger are encrypted in transit to avoid interception, but the encryption keys are managed by Facebook. This means that these messages can be read by Facebook or law enforcement under court order. Secret conversations are encrypted using the open-source Signal protocol, which can’t be read by anyone but you and the recipient of the message.Signal technology is also used to secure the excellent Signal Android app, WhatsApp messages, and Google Allo’s incognito messages.

Many companies claim they offer encryption, but most choose not to detail the process. facebook does the opposite. signal publicly claims that facebook’s Signal implementation is the right thing to do. A recent Amnesty International survey showed that Facebook Messenger leads all other messaging services, including Apple’s default messaging, when it comes to protecting messages.

The Secret Conversation mode looks like a simplified version of regular text chat. The black bar at the top makes it visually clear that this is a different messaging experience. In Secret Conversations, you can still send photos, videos, stickers, and locations in addition to text. You can also set a timer to determine the duration of the message. Once the timer expires, the message is deleted. It’s similar to Snapchat, but with a greater focus on security, like Wickr .

Features on Android
Unique to Facebook Messenger for Android are the chat heads, which are circular icons hovering over the app and home screen that provide quick access to Facebook Messenger. These debuted in the main Facebook app and were loathed, but they make sense as floating widgets on Android.

Facebook Messenger (for Android) Chat avatars show the face of the message sender and appear when you receive a new message. Tapping on them opens the Messenger window, which contains all the options of the app, without having to open the app. I especially like that they show the full text of the incoming message for a few seconds so you can decide if you need to reply immediately. You can turn them off by clicking on the chat header and dragging it to the bottom of the screen, and you can disable them in Messenger settings. They are enabled by default.

While I like the chat heads, Snapchat’s innovative interface is better suited for receiving voice and video calls. On the app, you can take video calls via video, voice only, or text only without canceling the call. All it takes is a simple touch for a more flexible experience.

Perhaps the most surprising feature of Messenger for Android is that the app can be used as a complete replacement for an SMS client. During the setup process, you can set it as the default SMS tool. This is great because you can now have standard messages and Over-the-top messages in one place. Unfortunately, it’s not a call replacement app, but I can dream. iPhone users can’t get this experience due to Apple’s strict control over the phone’s core features.

Signal is a secure messaging application that can also be used as an alternative to an SMS client. I really like this implementation because it allows you to stay in touch with everyone in your contact list. Other Signal users receive encrypted messages, while others receive regular SMS messages. While I’m happy to see secret conversations in Messenger, Signal’s offering is better if privacy is your main concern.

Extremely simple
Facebook’s ubiquity is the best feature of Facebook Messenger. Unlike almost every other top messaging service, you probably don’t need to poke your friends to sign up. Even if they’re not on Facebook, the full SMS replacement option means you can send them messages seamlessly from the same app. The third-party app integration isn’t as seamless as others, but it rounds out an already robust feature set that includes GIFs, emojis, a variety of media, and a great sticker store. The recently launched “Secret Conversations” feature is the icing on an already great cake. It won the Android Mobile Messaging Editor’s Choice Award.