Guys,
Drop everything and get WeChat on your phone now. Forget about the rest, WeChat is the biggest in the world and expanding rapidly, and will be a part of your lives that you don't even know yet.
There isn't a shop, restaurant, hotel, taxi, Uber ... you name it that you can't walk into or use in China and pay for any product or service by simply opening your WeChat, scan the DataMatrix code and you're done in seconds. This has literally changed the entire payment process in all of China in under a year. There are some shops that even refuse to take cash now.
And they are just about to hit the entire world. They are having the same impact as smart phones did - and you know how many of you, including me, said you would never use a smart phone ....
And that's besides the free calls or video calls, text messages, pictures (well with any WiFi anyway).
There isn't a person alive in China who doesn't have WeChat, I go weeks without actually making an actual phone call because I do 98% of everything through WeChat, messages, calls, video calls to my Missus and Kids in Oz, etc, including business conference calls etc.
You can or not, upload your own pictures, with mini blogs if you like, it's like Facebook but only the people who you have added can see, and you can limit them to if they see that info or not. A girl added me last night for business (3D printers, get your minds out of the gutter) and I could see her personal pictures just after she added me, then a minute later they were blocked from my eyes.
Numbers of people use it to sell product in that manner, but you don't see any of that unless you specifically click on that person and then you can chose to add or not, there's no PopUp Adverts or any other encroachments.
You can search for friends usually in a 20km radius, Female or Male filters if needed, although that will yield 95% Chinese people at the moment until WeChat gets more established outside of China. The people who show up have their friend search on also.
There's Group Chats as well, bunches of RAA or Rec Flying Members can be in contact constantly. That's not for me though, I hate looking at my phone and seeing 58 unseen messages.
If you want to test it, download and install it, then just add me after you install it. - Mongrel99 I'll tell you where to go, then you'll really know it's me!
WeChat - Free messaging and calling app
By the way, WhatsApp is pretty good, but not a patch on what you will be using WeChat for very soon, that you don't even know you will be yet.