KakaoTalk
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I want everything in Kakao's smart home collection
I don't use Kakao Talk (mostly because none of my friends do), but I've always appreciated the messaging app's sticker-based characters -- known collectively as Kakao Friends -- which include a mischievous peach, a Jay-Z-loving secret agent and a pickled radish that walks around in a rabbit costume. Kakao and Nendo, a design studio with offices in Tokyo and Milan, have used these lovable creatures as inspiration for a family of adorable smart home devices. There are seven pieces in total: a thermometer, humidifier, air purifier, scale, lamp, alarm and baby camera. In short, I want all of them. Immediately.
Beyond Facebook: What you need to know about texting apps
If you live in the United States, you might've been surprised when Facebook purchased WhatsApp for $19 billion -- or, in other words, thing-you'd-think-you'd-have-heard-of money. Facebook identified what those of us in the US with texting plans and Apple Messages haven't noticed: There are whole ecosystems of social networking and instant messaging separate from those we customarily use. There are a number of advantages services like Line and WhatsApp have over basic texting: They're cross-platform and international, allowing people to talk to other users in other countries, on other devices and other networks, with no extra cost. Of course, for individual users, there's only one thing that distinguishes one service from others: the presence of their friends.
'Introverted' Evernote pairs with messaging app Kakao Talk (and its 90 million users)
It's not all WhatsApp and LINE. If you're in Korea, then your messaging app of choice is most likely to be Kakao Talk, and Evernote hopes that allying with the app will expand its remit and boost its presence in Asia. The team-up looks set to bring Evernote's services within the chat window of your Kakao Talk conversations, allowing users to share images, links and entire messages to their private note locker. According to Evernote CEO Phil Libin, the company's products have typically been "quite introverted; keeping your own memories and information for your own use." He added that Evernote is always looking for ways to improve sharing and collaboration with the app: "There is a lot we can learn about sharing and communication by working with Kakao." The messaging app's CEO Lee Sir-goo added that the partnership would "elevate the status of Kakao Talk as a global mobile platform," with the Evernote-optimized iteration arriving in the next two to three months. Now, to figure out exactly how many messaging apps is too many messaging apps.
Telkomsel's new unlimited messaging plan gives Indonesians an alternative to BBM
As far as monopolies go, word on the interwebs is BlackBerry holds a pretty major one with its own BBM in Indonesian territory. According to DailySocial, though, that all could be changing soon thanks to Telkomsel's newly introduced all-you-can-message plans. The deal's fairly simple, the Indonesian carrier's bundling applications like Opera Mini, Line, WhatsApp and KakaoTalk in an unlimited package, with pricing starting at a mere 30,000 Rp (around $3) per month. Obviously, with the inclusion of a couple of the aforementioned apps, Indonesians could -- in theory -- also make calls without using their precious minutes, which is quite a good deal for under four bucks. In the end, it looks like it'll come down to how attached folks are to all those BlackBerry Messenger pins and whistles.
100 million smartphone owners in China getting free VoIP through messaging app Weixin
If you're in China and use a free chat app called Weixin on Android or iOS, you're about to get no-charge VoIP as well thanks to an imminent update. The company is set to join the likes of Skype, Viber and Korea's Kakao Talk in providing free cellphone calls to the nation and ought to make a huge splash given the massive 100 million user install base. The Tencent-owned service is also adding Bluetooth support, a matching VoIP web service and a complete redesign of its site, according to TechNode. There's no release date yet or word on whether the English version WeChat will get it, but if so, it might make those pricey cellphone calls to friends and family overseas a lot freer.
