I deleted WhatsApp for a year and here's what I learned

An initial flurry of real calls and more time to read turned into losing contacts, missing out on groups and upsetting my wife

At the end of 2016, I sent a message to all my contacts: "After 31 December, I will not use WhatsApp any more. Instead, I will use Threema and Signal."

On New Year's Eve, I closed my WhatsApp account and deleted the app from my phone. A few clicks later, I'd left all my family, friend and work groups, the school groups of my children and all my individual contacts.