- Beeper Mini is a new app that allows people using Android to use iMessage.
- This means that Android users can send blue bubble texts, voice messages, and reactions to iPhone users.
- The app’s CEO said the prototype was created by a teenage boy who reverse engineered iMessage.
If those scary green bubble text messages are the only thing stopping you from switching to Android, today could be your lucky day.
A new unofficial iMessage app for Android is here.
It’s called Beeper Mini, and it’s an Android app that’s not affiliated with Apple in any way and allows you to send blue bubble text messages that were previously only available to Apple users.
Beeper said the app also offers features previously only available on iMessage and iPhone, including Apple read receipts, full-resolution photo and video attachments, emoji reactions, voice messages, and stickers. It will be accessible.
The app is bound to trouble Apple, which fiercely protects its iMessage technology. After all, the coveted blue bubble text is an important way for the iPhone company to keep people locked into its product ecosystem. So while the app is currently available for download on the Google Play Store, don’t be surprised if Apple steps in and tries to remove it.
This app requires a monthly subscription of $1.99. Beeper Mini co-founder Eric Migicovsky told Business Insider that the fee is to show it’s a reliable service and doesn’t display ads. He added that the company will not sell or upload your data.
Beeper said the app connects Android phones to Apple servers and allows them to send and receive end-to-end encrypted messages, not read them.
Migikowski said the app’s prototype came from a surprising source: It was created by a 16-year-old student. Migikowski said the teenager contacted him through Discord last summer and told him he had reverse engineered iMessages, something he said had never been done before.
Beeper isn’t exactly the first Android app to offer iPhone owners the ability to send blue bubble texts. Smartphone company Nothing briefly offered a similar iMessage app earlier this year before it was removed due to privacy concerns.
Migocvsky told BI that neither Apple nor its legal representatives have contacted him about the app, and that the company does not use any Apple code.
“Beeper Mini really improves the experience for iPhone users,” Migiocvsky said, referring to the fact that currently cross-platform texting can be a clunky and frustrating experience.
“I think the most important thing is that the green bubble chat is not encrypted, while the blue bubble chat is encrypted,” he said. “So I’m optimistic here. I think Apple will actually appreciate that Beeper mini will make the lives of his iPhone users better.”
Migikowski declined to say how many people have downloaded the app so far, but said he would have more information in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Apple plans to adopt the RCS messaging standard after years of pressure campaigns from Google and Samsung. This move improves text messaging between Android and iPhone, allowing you to send photos and videos between platforms without media files being fuzzy or compressed. However, the green bubble text will probably never disappear.
Beeper Mini currently only supports iMessage, Migicovsky said, but the company is working on supporting other platforms such as SMS and RCS in the future.
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