iMessage is reportedly coming to android, but there's a catch

iMessage is reportedly coming to android, but there's a catch

Using iMessage on Android has long been a wish list item for many who want to unify Apple's messaging platform outside of that device. And if the new app that just launched works as advertised, it will be another entry on our best chat apps list.

Eric Migicovsky, CEO and founder of Pebble (the famous wearables maker), has just launched Beeper, a new messaging client that aims to house everything from iMessage to WhatsApp to Signal to Slack. Just launched, Facebook Messenger, Discord, and even Google Meet are on the list. The only problem? It costs $10 a month.

Beeper, which you can sign up for today, uses wild and wacky tricks to bring iMessage to Android. Migikowski says that the implementation of iMessage on Android and other platforms is literally "tricked out."

According to Beeper's FAQ, the first way is to install its Mac app on a "Mac that is always connected to the Internet" and create a "bridge" from the Mac to the Android phone.

But what about Android users who do not have a Mac? Interestingly, Migicovsky has a bunch of jailbroken iPhone 4s that he is trying to send to people who need them.

Beeper will work on Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, and Linus, but I could not find iOS or Android versions in their respective app stores. Also, there is no download link on the Beeper website.

Beeper's FAQ page explains that Beeper is built around an open source collaborative messaging protocol known as Matrix:

And since all apps require dark mode, the Beeper site notes to expect it in the next update.

That said, this is exactly the kind of thing Apple has lawyers surrounding it to shut it down: whether Beeper can keep beeping or whether Tim Cook's troops will shut it down, readers, stay tuned.

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