Beeper Mini
Beeper Mini
Finally, get blue bubbles on Android!
So there is this app claiming on-device iMessage functionality on Android. Seems cool but only has subscription based pricing. Does anyone know of a way to circumvent this?
Edit: I found this but it seems a bit dodgy
Iirc the entire app is open-source, you can prob strip out the subscription parts and build it yourself
The original work/PoC they based it off of is PyPush and that definitely has a GitHub here: https://github.com/JJTech0130/pypush
If you can't/don't do the work, you'll have to wait, something will come along eventually but that app just came out the other day
That's just the proof of concept, there is a lot of work and infrastructure besides that code. You can read a more in depth explanation of how it works on their blog
Yea I know it's a PoC, It's work, but not that much work...if you have the skill set lol
I was actually digging into JJTechs project a bit, I'm planning on building something of my own, but my version is going to try to tap into Androids messaging service instead so that I can use any SMS app I wish.
The idea being my service will be a translation layer of sorts instead of an independent app that I have to switch too.
It's SSPL, so source available, not open source.
This is great news, thanks!
The only person I know who has an iPhone is my fiance and we use Matrix to communicate or Signal as a fallback if I fuck up the Matrix server. So this app is not really for me.
I really wonder how long it will take Apple to just be able to detect and block it.
They can't block it, as it's using the standard imessage way. They could change the way iMessage works, but that would break iMessage support on older iOS devices that no longer are supported.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/12/08/apple-cuts-off-beeper-minis-access-after-launch-of-service-that-brought-imessage-to-android/ that didn't take as long as I thought.
One more reason for people to get a new iPhone 🥳
They'll probably find a way of authenticating that a phone number is using an iPhone, or start requiring an extra step when a number tries registering for use on its servers.
They haven't blocked any other third party apps using iMessage.
I don't really think they want to. It's kind of like pirating - more people are using the service.
I had always dreamed of visiting California, the land of sun, surf and celebrities. So when I got the chance to go there for a week, I was over the moon. I packed my bags, grabbed my camera and boarded the plane.
I spent the first day in Los Angeles, where I saw the Hollywood sign, walked along the Walk of Fame and took a tour of the Universal Studios. I felt like I was in a movie. The next day, I drove to San Francisco, where I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, visited the Alcatraz Island and rode a cable car. I was amazed by the diversity and culture of the city.
The rest of the week, I explored the natural beauty of California. I hiked in the Yosemite National Park, where I saw waterfalls, mountains and wildlife. I camped in the Sequoia National Park, where I marveled at the giant trees. I surfed in the Malibu Beach, where I enjoyed the waves and the sun.
It was the best vacation of my life. I took hundreds of photos and videos to capture every moment. But there was one problem: I didn't own an iPhone. So I couldn't share them with anyone.
Way to give Apple money in a round-about way. Truly genius.
If you have an apple computer you can set something like this up for free.
And I believe the folks at Beeper published their self-host on Github.
Even a trial of this REQUIRES them to have billing info on file. Likely Apple is going to shut this down within a few months. If they don't, I imagine some better options may emerge.
And... It's done: https://lemmy.world/post/9325834
Callled it. Get your subscription cancelations in now. This was a thoughtless cash grab.
Looks like beeper got their stuff working again.
Can’t imagine this working out very well long term though
Apple hasn't shut down any other iMessage system, not the original bluebubbles.
Aaaaand its dead https://9to5google.com/2023/12/09/apple-beeper-mini-imessage/
Never used iphone. How is iMessage different than messages on android
Permanently Deleted
I definetely wouldn't trust that link; Beeper mini functionality requires you to conect to their servers for registration, initial handshake and push notifications so I don’t think there is a way to avoid a subscription
Edit for clarity: I wouldn't trust the apk you linked in your edit, not the original Beeper mini app in the play store
No. That is beeper.
Beeper mini is a stand alone app that was acquired by beeper that does not do the MITM shit.
See the comment by @cm0002 for details.
Still don't think it is a good idea. As another comment stated I expected apple to block it in the near future.
They do use their infrastructure to connect to Apple Notification Service servers when the app is not used, they do act as a Man In The Middle but in a secure, concise manner (not in a sketchy way). And they conect to their servers for registration and subscription status. You can read a more in depth explanation on their blog
https://blog.beeper.com/p/how-beeper-mini-works
Besides all that I'm not sure if someone who wants to create it's own implementation of all of this can do it without any apple device; reading jjtech technical explanation (https://jjtech.dev/reverse-engineering/imessage-explained/) where he explains pypush he mentions the obfuscation process for registering a device to apple servers, here is where pypush somehow manages to convince Apple that the machine is genuine, there is a mention there to some serial identifier stored on a file called data.plist, if someone wants to implement this proof of concept would need to give another serial identifier?
Looks like it may be compromised https://www.virustotal.com/gui/file/f698422499fbf9396136826b6fe2347e62fe10de2aeb95fdf191b75a92176764?nocache=1
It’s just three out of everything…seems like a false positive
What’s the point? Why not just use e.g. Discord?
The US seems to have this weird obsession with SMS and iMessage.
IPhone users have a weird obsession with Blue bubbles. The rest of us find it childish and annoying. They refuse to use any messenger other than iMessage.
I have a friend, not currently on iPhone, who was having trouble with SMS (note that SMS has a known message failure rate of about 10%+). He refused to switch to another messaging app, doesn't want to have multiple places to message from. 🤦♂️
This is the mindset of iMessage obsessors. Frankly I see it as pretty juvenile. They don't want to put effort into solving a problem.
This same person always has dozens of notifications sitting in the notification shade. Stuff you just don't need to see, that Android lets you silence. Or just app notifications. Well no wonder he doesn't want another messenger, with that much garbage he wouldn't know he got a new message.
- Discord sucks
- If you can get my friends/family to switch to anything else I'm on board.
You act like we haven't tried to get people to switch. Even Android users. People can't be arsed to change because they don't see the problem.
I've gotten 1 person to switch away from SMS to Telegram, because it has clients for every OS. That makes it convenient, and it can do a lot more.