All-in-One Chat App ‘Beeper’ brings iMessage to Android and Windows using an alternative solution

New universal chat app “Beeper” combines 15 different chat platforms in a single inbox and offers iMessage on Android and Windows (via The Verge)

The app comes from a team that includes former Pebble CEO Eric Migicovsky, and allows users to integrate a variety of messaging services, including WhatsApp, SMS, Signal, Telegram, Slack, Twitter, Skype, Hangouts, Discord, Instagram and Facebook Messenger in a single searchable inbox. Most impressive is support for Apple’s iMessage, as it is only officially available on Apple devices.

The application is “using some trick“to achieve this, with the site’s FAQ revealing that a Mac always online running the Beeper app is needed to be used as a bridge. Alternatively, Beeper will send an” unlocked iPhone with the installed Beeper app that connects to iMessage ” for users unable to use a Mac.

The application is built on the open source Matrix messaging protocol. While the clear short-term goal is to make chatting across different services easier, Migicovsky discussed the possibility for all users to make the gradual transition to the open source Matrix itself to chat, rather than simply using it as a bridge between services.

Beeper will cost $ 10 a month for your hosted option and is set to be available on macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android. Potential users can request an advance invitation to join the application on the Beeper website.