Most of the messaging apps are “secure” hence save their data, downloads in locked space. They do allow one to save a particular image or file anywhere but it is a manual process not practical if I want to access all images I received in the last 5 years.
WhatsApp has been good for me in this regard because it saves them in a user accessible directory. But recently WhatsApp has made it impossible to use offline as backup because it refuses to read from it in a new phone. Only Google Drive backup is allowed.
Is there any other app which allows storage in a user accessible location?
Telegram.
Oh, I had forgotten about that one.
Viber does this by default for media but it also doesn’t support offline chat backups and I don’t know if it’s something you’d want to move to in general.
Viber is something which I have not tried recently but offline chat backups.
I think you are talking on online messaging, but if not, Fossify messenger has the option to backup SMS.
Yes, this is about viable WhatsApp replacement for me and my friends.
