Description: Jolt is a new app for Android that aims to replace all of your existing messaging applications as well as creating a secure and private way to communicate with others. Unlike other messaging apps, Jolt is free and it allows the user all the control they like, with the Idea social network side of the app for instance, the owner of an idea retains control of the conversation, allowing to keep things on track. As well as that, there’s the ability to send images, audio and more in messages for free, along with free calling, too. Overall, Jolt offers a lot for those looking for a low-cost and secure way to communicate with each other.
How it Works: To download Jolt, and find out what it can offer you just head on over to the Play Store. Once you’ve got the app installed, you’ll need to create an account but, that’s really quite easy.
All you really need to enter is a username and an e-mail address, that’s it.
Once you’ve gotten an account, you’ll see all the features that Jolt has to offer:
Everything is straightforward and easy to use, sending a message to someone is as easy as typing in there username and hitting send, for instance. One of the more interesting parts of Jolt is the ideas network.
You can choose any topic you like for an idea and then create a discussion surrounding that subject. What’s great about this is that whomever creates the idea controls who has access to that idea and they can remove users at any time, it’s all very controllable by the user that created the topic in the first place. Starting an idea is just as simple to do as everything else is when using Jolt.
Everything is very “obvious” when using Jolt, which is pretty great as there’s no need to do something a specific way or anything like that, everything acts like you think it would and there are some settings you can tweak to your liking, too such as different themes.
Opinion: Jolt is a great app to be able to reach people for free but, it’s not perfect. The user interface, while easy to use needs some extra polish to make it look the part and for another, we’re not quite sure how secure Jolt really is. While we wouldn’t take the claim about it being NSA-proof too seriously, the developer has implemented an incredibly secure system to protect your privacy. With keys changing every 5 minutes and However, it is secure in the fact that users control what happens with their account and the only personal information you need to hand over is an e-mail address. There are no hoops to jump through to delete a user or ban them from a discussion and everything is easily controlled by you. Is Jolt more secure than other messaging apps? When in use, certainly but, we can’t be for sure how secure it is from outside visitors.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Jolt runs quickly and messages are sent speedily with little delay.
- Features (4.5/5) – As a messaging and calling platform, Jolt has pretty much everything you could want but, it does need some added polish.
- Theme (3/5) – Where that added polish is needed most is with the theme of Jolt, it’s functional and looks good but, there’s very little flare to it at all.
- Overall (4/5) – As a free messaging app, Jolt shapes up nicely but, with some added flare and polish, Jolt would be a much more viable option.
Pros
- Easy to use interface requires very little learning to use.
- It’s free – what’s not to love about that?
- Messages and discussions are controlled by users, not the overall network.
- Calling, video calling, image sending and more are all included with Jolt – it pretty much offers everything.
Cons
- Could do with some extra polish.
- UI is functional and easy to use but, not all that easy on the eye.
Conclusion: All-in-all, Jolt offers a lot for nothing, and it’s great that users are able to control what goes on while using the app. From that perspective, the app truly is quite secure, allowing users to take back control and police things themselves. The ideas network is a great and simple way of getting people to talk about the same thing, without having things get off track too much, in fact it’s pretty easy to ban users from a discussion and take back control. Overall, this is one of the better ways we’ve seen this implemented over the years and we wish more networks would take the same approach. Where Jolt falls down however, is in the unpolished UI that’s functional and easy to use but, uninspiring all the same. Is Jolt a good free app? Most certainly. Is it worth installing and trying out? Without a doubt.