Publication of the first materials in our blog caused a lively reaction among the habrasoobshchestva: someone cursed
Converse , someone reading the first article, complained that "the theme of boobs is not disclosed," and someone, on the contrary, showed interest in the messenger. Taking into account the questions that have arisen, we collected the most frequent of them, systematized and gave our answers.
So after all, why did we decide to make our mobile Internet instant messenger?We tried to answer this question
in the last article , but it seems that not all our arguments seemed to be correct. See it. First, the number of mobile users is growing, the market niche is growing, which means that the likelihood that a new product will actively increase its audience is high. Anyone who now enters this market has an equal chance of success with us. Secondly, we study competitive solutions and, when implementing any Converse functions, we try at least not to step on other people's rakes, as a maximum - to surpass the analogs in some way. Typical examples are Converse operation in the conditions of a narrow Internet channel when connecting via GPRS, the ability to use one account, the low cost of a call to mobile and landline numbers. In the end, competition is always good.
Here we must also understand that we do not have such a popular character as Pavel Durov, we cannot provide Converse with the same PR that accompanies Telegram. We can’t count on the attention of a wide audience, so we opened a blog on Habrahabr so that as a result of our interaction with advanced habr users, we can improve Converse, so that people themselves want to use it.
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How did you get the idea to create your own mobile Internet instant messenger? Was the idea born spontaneously, or did you consider that the functionality of the existing programs is not enough?It all started with the idea of ​​creating an application for making voice calls between applications and toll calls to external networks. At the same time, the functionality of text messaging with smiles or photos was not included into the functionality initially. Already in the process of working on the program, we came to the understanding that the text messaging function, as an alternative to SMS, is uniquely in demand by many potential program users. Yes, and the user market is much easier to go with an instant messenger that supports text messaging.
The very idea of ​​creating an application for voice communication appeared in 2012, and, in fact, Converse was its logical continuation. Both functionally and in terms of business development of the development team.
What is already implemented in Converse and what features will appear in the future?At this time, the following features are implemented in Converse:
- Free voice communication between users. At the same time, we tried to implement a stable voice communication even in “narrow” channels. For example, when connecting via GPRS. Here it is necessary to clarify that voice communication will work well if the GPRS channel is stable and provides a speed of at least 8 Kbps.
- Paid voice calls to any numbers (cellular and landline phones) outside the Converse network at attractive rates. The cost of a minute of conversation is automatically displayed after entering the number in the dialer. If the number is already in the phone book, the cost of the call is displayed in the contact details.
- Text messaging, sending photos, videos and location maps.
- Group chats numbering up to 100 participants.
- Single expense account for multiple Converse users. For example, if you want your child to call using your Converse account, it is possible to link several devices to one account.
- If you have more than one mobile device, you can install Converse on everything and duplicate chats between these devices. At the same time, incoming messages will be sent to all merged devices, and outgoing messages will be sent on behalf of the main machine.
- 12 languages ​​are supported: German, Spanish, French, Italian, Kazakh, Korean, Turkish, Ukrainian, Chinese, Japanese and, of course, Russian and English.
In the near future, the following features will appear in Converse:
- Video calls within the Converse network;
- Sending contact details and any file;
- Select multiple chat messages for deletion / transfer;
In addition, Converse will be adapted for use on large-screen tablets.
In the long term, before the end of the year, we plan to implement automatic recovery of the voice session when changing the Internet connection (for example, switching from 3G to Wi-Fi), the ability to delete our messages from other users of conference audio and video calls. There are also plans to release client versions for Windows and MAC platforms.
At the moment, calls to the USA, China, India, Thailand and Singapore are announced. Is this a complete list? Which countries will join this list in the near future?Using Converse, any user can call any phone number anywhere in the world. To test the function of toll calls, each new user of the application automatically receives $ 2 to his account. At the same time, we are constantly working to improve the quality of paid calls. And if someone with toll calls has difficulty (no hearing, wheezing, random dropping of calls, etc.), we ask you to report such cases through the feedback function in the application.
Is it correct to say that calls to Converse to phone numbers outside the application are cheaper than those, for example, in Skype?Yes,
it is . Converse Out tariffs are very attractive for making calls to mobile and landline numbers.
Does the program focus on something concrete, or does the development of all its capabilities receive equal attention?Our application has three main functions: voice calls, text messaging and, implemented now, video calls. We are working on the development of these functions simultaneously. At the same time, we are open to dialogue with our potential users. If there are any suggestions on functionality / design, then they will be necessarily considered and considered by us. So that any of the community can offer their ideas - we are only happy about this.
Is this your first mobile app release experience? What is the experience behind the team developers?This is the only application of our team for end users. We previously worked in the corporate voice segment. Unfortunately, the terms of existing contracts do not allow us to provide more information about our other developments.
How many people already have Converse users? What is the daily program statistics of the program?At this time, we have more than 5,000 users. About 150 people install Converse per day. Of course, these are very small numbers compared to other market participants, but this is just the beginning.
Is Converse still in beta? If so, how many beta testers do you have and can you join them?At the moment, we actively collect and process all comments / suggestions, and Converse updates appear once a week. We are planning to finish the active beta test stage in May.
Participant testing can be anyone. To do this, simply install the application and start using it. All comments and suggestions, bugs please send to
support@convapp.com or through the feedback function in the application.
How is your process of catching and fixing bugs in Converse?Catching bugs occurs in the process of using the application. We have 2 sources of information about bugs: user messages via the feedback function or e-mail, as well as the function of collecting “crashes” built into Converse itself. If for some reason an error has occurred in the application, we will immediately know about it. The crash collection function works only with the application itself, it sends us only the name of the smartphone and the Android version — no more information about the mobile device or the user is collected or given to us.
After the bug has been fixed, our team of testers reproduce it, and then the developers, based on the description received from the testers, fix the bug. New builds of the program are again sent to testers, who check how well everything is fixed. It turns out something like a double control.
How will Converse be updated?As mentioned above, given that the active testing stage is underway, we are currently releasing updates once a week. In June, we plan to launch a monthly update cycle.
When will Converse for iOS appear?We are working on the iOS version of Converse now, we are planning to release it in May. The Android version appeared earlier only in order to work out all the Converse features in detail, and this choice was not based on the “religious” affiliation of the team to the Android platform. One of the reasons for the release of the version for Android before iOS is the ability to quickly make changes in case of critical errors and publish a new version on Google Play. In the App Store, this process can take a week or more.
What are the methods of account replenishment in Converse. What payment methods will be implemented in the future?At this time, there is only one way to fund your account - internal payments on Google Play. In June, it will be possible to replenish your account using VISA and Master Card.
What program is considered the main competitor of Converse?At this time, probably the most we are like Viber. But we did not try to copy someone. So, the Converse interface was designed based on the existing recommendations of Google. For iOS there will be a completely different interface in bright colors in the spirit of applications for the iPhone and iPad.
****Converse is one of the youngest mobile messengers, it reflects our vision of how a convenient messenger can be. We, as developers, are still only at the beginning of the journey and look forward to a constructive dialogue with the habrosocon community: if you have any suggestions for improving the functionality or the work of Converse - share, we will only be happy. In the near future a detailed article on Converse “from the inside” will be published in the blog. That is how the application works.