Edit - y’all are awesome! I’m gonna check out all of these - thank you!!

–

A family member is moving out of country and convinced the best way to keep in touch is with WhatsApp. I really don’t want to install any Meta shit on my phone.

Any recommendation for a FOSS or other alternative from a company that’s less of an ethical dumpster fire?

  • jbaber@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    224·
    5 days ago

    For my family member who moved out of country, signal’s voice quality was not very good. WhatsApp’s quality was better than a regular phone call, very impressive.

    Also, outside the US WhatsApp is some kind of standard the way rich Americans think iMessage is. Companies will ask her to contact them on WhatsApp, so she’ll have to have it regardless of your personal involvement.

    There’s also jitsi.

    • Rinox@feddit.it
      2·
      4 days ago

      Here goes to hoping that EU massages Whatsapp third party compatibility actually works. It would be great if Signal decided to enter the program, so that I could start recommending it to friends and family as a full on replacement, while not losing the ability to communicate with those who use WhatsApp.

      I understand Signal stance, but it would honestly be better to have a mainstream alternative to Whatsapp that actually cares about privacy, rather than a niche product nobody uses

    • Vitaly@feddit.uk
      5·
      5 days ago

      Do you think signal’s voice quality is not as good as whatsapp? It might be because they have less servers than whatsapp

    • riot@lemmy.world
      4·
      4 days ago

      Also, outside the US WhatsApp is some kind of standard the way rich Americans think iMessage is. Companies will ask her to contact them on WhatsApp, so she’ll have to have it regardless of your personal involvement.

      That really depends on the country that the family member is moving to, and is not an absolute thing world-wide.

  • LifeLemons@lemmy.mlEnglish
    9·
    5 days ago

    Signal or XMPP are good option

    XMPP may be a bit overwhelming as you need to select a provider and a client. Doesn’t require phone number.

    Signal is private and easy to use like whatsapp. Needs phone number to use.

    Telegram is cool but encryption isnt enabled by default, would like to avoid it for this. Cool for public groups.

    Edit: Teleram isnt good at all, dont use it. Look reason in the replies

  • airikr@lemmy.ml
    8·
    5 days ago

    XMPP. Oh, wait, company based.

    • Signal if you want phone number based signups.
    • SimpleX Chat if you want to experience full privacy.
    • Threema if you want basically the same as SimpleX Chat, but want to give them money first.

    But XMPP would be the best option. Snikket is recommended for easy setup.

  • HotCoffee@lemm.ee
    21·
    4 days ago

    SimpleX Chat, no phone number or e-mail registration needed. Truly a privacy pioneer.

    • sudoer777@lemmy.ml
      7·
      4 days ago

      Hey do you want to go get some pizza after work? BTW I love this new messenger called Lemmy, I feel so much safer that we’re not being spied on! C ya