Earlier this month, WhatsApp announced some changes to its privacy policy that sent users scramble to move their mobile social life to a new network. Signal has a influx of rich earn new users, and Android users have complained that they can’t switch to Apple’s iMessage. It’s all a long way to go to say that this is a good time to use messages –and the founder of Pebble claims he has a strange new solution.
Squeak is an upcoming app that sells itself as a hub for all your messaging. Instead of running half a dozen programs to keep in touch with friends, family, and co-workers, Beeper can pour everything into one interface. According to its website, the app supports 14 external messaging platforms as well as its own Beeper network. But the company’s claim that it’s bringing iMessage to Android, Windows or Linux devices could be a killer feature for anyone using the embarrassment of the green bubble.
Apple likes to keep its own products exclusively for its own hardware, so this claim is a bit surprising, but Beeper says it’s a solution. On his website, it explains:
Beeper has two ways to enable Android, Windows, and Linux users to use iMessage: we send each user a Jailbroken iPhone with the Beeper app installed that bridges to iMessage, or if they have a Mac that always connected to the internet, they can install the Beeper Mac app which acts as a bridge. This is not a joke, it really works!
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Okay, the section on using a Mac that is always connected as a bridge not unknown, but the idea of jailing users with advanced iPhones is a bit of a scam.
Eric Migicovsky, founder of the Pebble Smart Watch Company and partner at Beeper, taken to Twitter to insist that the jailbreak plan is legal and that he currently has 50 iPhone 4s ready for the task.
Everyone needs a gimmick, and we give Beeper points for originality. But it’s hard to imagine that there will be a huge demand for this jailbreak solution. Then again, it’s a big world out there and there’s surely a market for these older devices if it’s not too expensive. But an old iPhone that has been captured is a security risk that only becomes more dangerous over time because you cannot apply security updates without putting the unit back in jail.
Another concern about privacy is encryption. Beep’s Privacy Policy is fairly simple and contains no dazzling red flags. But it also does not contain coding. Many of the services that come with it use some end-to-end coding, and Beeper must be able to guarantee users that they can expect the same level of security as when using any standalone services. Beeper did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment on its coding policy. and we will update this post when we receive a reply.
Here is the list of messaging services that are compatible with Beeper:
- Facebook Messenger
- iMessage
- Android Messaging (SMS)
- Telegram
- Slap
- Hangouts
- Skype
- IRC
- Matrix
- Onmin
- Sein
- Beep Network
I give some impressions, but the app is not yet available and for now it’s just what you can do login to be notified when launched.
Beeper raises many questions, the most important of which may be whether people are willing to pay a subscription fee of $ 10 per month. Everyone is currently aware of their monthly subscribers, and it’s unclear if it’s a bigger pain in the ass to help do their messages.