WeChat: want an app that lets you do everything at once?

China may be showing the way forward with its innovative messaging service

Would you want to be able to book a taxi from your email program? How about being able to send emails from your music organiser? Or maybe you'd like to be able to order a pizza while using your dating app?

Unlikely scenarios, all three; and yet many of the apps that we use would like to be able to encompass functionalities as diverse as that. It was part of the integrated approach that Microsoft's Windows Phone introduced in 2010 with its "People Hub" idea. That didn't have much success, arguably because it was too early and the implementation wasn't great. But the idea that when you communicate, you want to be able do all sorts of communication - whether via Facebook or Twitter or text or email - is one that is catching on in a big way.

Continue reading...