SMS text messages have 160 character limits. Tweets are limited to 140. Snapchats are even less, plus they disappear after they are read. Apps couldn’t possibly limit communication more than popular messaging apps already have, right?
Wrong.
Yo is a new kind of messaging app that simply sends the word “Yo” to your friends. That’s it - just yo.
Yo's functionality could not be simpler. Add a friend who has the app, tap their name and they immediately receive a push notification that simply reads “Yo. From [name]” accompanied by a little voice that indubitably mutters the word, “yo.”
Yo's app icon? A single shade of purple. In fact, the app was initially rejected by Apple because they thought the app icon was not finished. The creator, Or Arbel, coded the app in just 8 hours. In an interview with the New York Times he said, “People think it's just an app that says 'Yo,' but it's really not. We like to call it context-based messaging. You understand by the context what is being said.”
Yo’s description on the App Store sheds some light on context-based messaging and how people are using it:
Wanna say “good morning?" just Yo.
Wanna say “Baby I’m thinking about you?" - Yo.
“I’ve finished my meeting, come by my office” - Yo.
“Are you up?” - Yo.
The possibilities are endless.
Yo shines in it’s efficiency. “The company boasts that it takes 11 taps to send the word ‘yo’ on a rival messaging service... compared to just two on their app. That’s a nine tap difference,” late night comedian Stephen Colbert remarked. “Taps you could be spending with your children.”
If the app itself isn’t ridiculous enough, check out some of these reviews on the App Store:
“When the wife texts me to go get some stuff from the store, all I do is shoot her back a Yo. When the kids text for money or a ride, I get on the app and hit them with a Yo. Yo is a way of life. Live simply, live beautifully. Yo.”
“I don’t even text my friends anymore now that I can just Yo them... I Yo my dog like every day and we’re really starting to connect on a whole new level now that I trained him to Yo me back. This app cured my acne and got me a date with my older sister’s friend.”
“Not just a means of simple but effective communication, Yo is a way of life. Since downloading Yo, all my relationships have improved and I’ve regrown most of my hair. My girlfriend no longer complains that I don’t text her enough, I just Yo that b.”
“When we look back on the greatest thinkers and most influential people of the 21st century, the app Yo will be one of them. I sent a Yo to a girl I liked and now we’re engaged. I had to deliver my father’s eulogy so I sent myself a Yo and it brought the room to tears. Yo should receive the Nobel Prize in both Peace and Literature.”
While many laugh at the seemingly ridiculous idea of a messaging app that only sends one word, Yo is #33 in the “Free” section of the App Store as of June 25th. The app has been featured on numerous talk shows, magazines and blogs. Its 50,000 users have already sent over 4 million yo’s.
Believe it or not, the Yo developers have already racked up $1.2 million in funding from investors. A million dollar app that just sends 2 characters.
“Yo.” is available for iOS for free here.
