That makes no sense because SMS-compatibility is the trojan horse to get adoption. Without SMS it's just another messaging app with huge network-effect adoption challenges.
You can still send unencrypted SMS messages to people who don't use TextSecure. You can still send encrypted messages to people who do use TextSecure. All you lose is the ability to send encrypted SMS messages to people who are already using TextSecure; instead you must send messages through the Internet.
Well, as of this morning (after updating to v2.6) all I am able to do with my one other TS contact is send unsecured SMS. No encrypted SMS nor encrypted push. Frustrating to say the least!
I have been struggling for over a year now to get this one contact and I to have a smooth & reliable secure channel. Sometimes it works great and others times it just doesn't exist. And I usually have to jump through all kinds of hoops to get it to work again. Which makes it nearly impossible for me to recommend TS to others who are a little less technical than my one TS contact and myself.
I really want this to work smoothly, Moxie, I really do! If it does, then I can recommend it to everyone.
edit: spelling
edit2: Moxie has quickly replied to my issue on github and will be pushing v2.6.1 soon.
That bit about how the rest of the world isn't clamouring for more SMS? It's very true where I came from. The reason WhatsApp got so huge was because it was one of the first apps that allowed you to completely forgo SMS in favour of a 3g-backed messaging service, which was hell of a lot cheaper.
What I'm trying to say is, very few people here care about SMS compatibility.