I message on Windows?

[Frugivore8894]

 

 

Summary

 A new app allows you to use iMessage on other operating systems including Windows. It’s a subscription $10 a month.

Quotes

Quote

The app is "using some trickery" to achieve this, with the website's FAQ revealing that an always-online Mac running the Beeper app is needed to use as a bridge. Alternately, Beeper will ship a "Jailbroken iPhone with the Beeper app installed which bridges to iMessage" to users unable to use a Mac.

 

 

My thoughts

 It appears that they are use if some kind of server running your messages on a Mac on there side and then translating them on to there app. I understand the fee but it seems to me quite expensive but if you have to use iMessage it might be worth it.

 

Sources

https://www.macrumors.com/2021/01/21/beeper-brings-imessage-to-android-and-windows/

[Vishera]

Use KVM.

[Spotty]

4 minutes ago, Frugivore8894 said:

It’s a subscription $10 a month.

Why not just send an SMS? 

 

5 minutes ago, Frugivore8894 said:

It appears that they are use if some kind of server running your messages on a Mac on there side and then translating them on to there app.

Oh, so you're paying them to read all of your inbound and outbound messages? For $10/month they better offer advice on talking to girls and suggest some pickup lines to get the conversation started.

[Dr_Whom]

4 minutes ago, Spotty said:

Why not just send an SMS? 

 

Oh, so you're paying them to read all of your inbound and outbound messages? For $10/month they better offer advice on talking to girls and suggest some pickup lines to get the conversation started.

According to the WAN show last week, the best pickup line is 'I only use iMessage". Drops the panties 100% of the time, allegedly.

[Frugivore8894]

20 minutes ago, Spotty said:

Why not just send an SMS? 

 

Oh, so you're paying them to read all of your inbound and outbound messages? For $10/month they better offer advice on talking to girls and suggest some pickup lines to get the conversation started.

Lol! i agree it seems a little sketch. Who know where it will go.

[Commodus]

If you need a Mac or a jailbroken iPhone to make it work, it's not really a solution.

 

iMessage lock-in kinda sucks, but if you really value it... stick with an iPhone or Mac.

[AndreiArgeanu]

Why though, 10$ a month is a waste of money. You can pickup an iphone 5 or 6 for like 20-40$ and use imessage on that.

[Frugivore8894]

I would guess that it will go away quite fast. sorta like Quibi.

[NinJake]

The fact that they support Signal should trigger a little worry about how they are accessing/displaying encrypted messages. Don't trust this one bit.

[JLO64]

As somebody who just bought an iPad for school, iMessage (among other Apple integrations, features, and apps) is making me seriously consider my next phone being an iPhone and I would love to have it on my Windows desktop. That being said I am inherently suspicious of any services like this that go around Apple’s restrictions, especially at this price point.  I have heard of a similar iMessage forwarding program that you can download onto a Mac to forward messages to SMS or to other text clients. Due to the closed nature of Mac OS itself, renting Mac mini instances in the cloud is probably the only way the service can function which somewhat justifies the cost of it.  I still wouldn’t be surprised if Apple tries to shut this one down soon.

 

[Tensimeter]

This app is based off the matrix protocol, which is notably used by governments in France and Germany. It works on the server side and is not just a fancy gui that combines all the apps.

 

The protocol (matrix) uses the same end to end encryption as Signal by default. 
 

Matrix uses bridges which basically is how beeper works at its core, letting matrix send messages anywhere and vice versa. Bridges are what let a matrix based messenger like beeper talk with nearly anyone. One of the developers of this app is the same person who made many bridges for matrix.

 

Since all the backend software is open source it means you could basically host this app (which is really matrix+bridges) itself. They even say so explicitly on their faq:

Quote

• Self-host the full stack: The simplest and free way to self-host the full Matrix+bridges stack is with this Ansible script

You can therefore think of beeper's $10/month subscription as a convenient way to use the existing matrix protocol and its bridges without the hassle and cost of self-hosting.

A very busy thread on HN.

 

The actual app/service.

 

I am not a developer of this app, just a user who finds matrix very very compelling.

[LAwLz]

It's worth noting that it is not just iMessage, and not just on Windows. It's an app developed by the founder of Pebble and it supports 15 different messaging apps including signal, whatsapp, discord, telegram, etc. It works on Android and iOS too. 

 

I wouldn't trust it, but it's far more to it than just "iMessage on windows for 10 dollars a month". 

[williamcll]

Who even uses imessages these days?

[bcredeur97]

2 hours ago, Vishera said:

Use KVM.

isn't it troublesome to get imessage working on a hackintosh tho?

[Vishera]

1 hour ago, bcredeur97 said:

isn't it troublesome to get imessage working on a hackintosh tho?

 

[Pickles von Brine]

Not sure how I feel about this. And I am sure apple may not be onboard either. 

[Letgomyleghoe]

12 hours ago, Spotty said:

Why not just send an SMS? 

because Imessage works extremely well compared to sms in my time using it, and it's weird to contact someone from both imessage and not imessage.

[Mling]

13 hours ago, Spotty said:

they better offer advice on talking to girls and suggest some pickup lines to get the conversation started.

I & LTT forum do this for free.

[Letgomyleghoe]

29 minutes ago, Mling said:

I & LTT forum do this for free.

The last thing you'll learn on the LTT forum is how to talk to girls, you're more likely to become a homosexual (if you're not already) and find a boyfriend then learn to talk to girls on here.

[Drama Lama]

15 hours ago, Frugivore8894 said:

It’s a subscription

thtat makes me not wanna buy it

[Doobeedoo]

Subscription? Ahahaha!

[BigDamn]

23 hours ago, Dr_Whom said:

According to the WAN show last week, the best pickup line is 'I only use iMessage". Drops the panties 100% of the time, allegedly.

The most compelling argument in favor of iPhones I've seen yet. Bravo, sir. I may just switch.

[quantum-]

On 1/21/2021 at 5:01 PM, LAwLz said:

I wouldn't trust it...

Since the base matrix protocol is open source (as are all of beeper's bridges I think) you're free to audit, set up and run a matrix server along with all the bridges on hardware you trust. I think the only proprietary part of Beeper is the client, but there are a fair few Matrix clients out there already.

[RicenShine]

On 1/21/2021 at 10:41 PM, NinJake said:

The fact that they support Signal should trigger a little worry about how they are accessing/displaying encrypted messages. Don't trust this one bit.

Signal is so no one can do mitm attacks. If something is on your client you have already lost.

 

PS: signal is nonprofit dammit!

[RicenShine]

On 1/21/2021 at 11:00 PM, Tensimeter said:

This app is based off the matrix protocol, which is notably used by governments in France and Germany. It works on the server side and is not just a fancy gui that combines all the apps.

 

The protocol (matrix) uses the same end to end encryption as Signal by default. 
 

Matrix uses bridges which basically is how beeper works at its core, letting matrix send messages anywhere and vice versa. Bridges are what let a matrix based messenger like beeper talk with nearly anyone. One of the developers of this app is the same person who made many bridges for matrix.

 

Since all the backend software is open source it means you could basically host this app (which is really matrix+bridges) itself. They even say so explicitly on their faq:

You can therefore think of beeper's $10/month subscription as a convenient way to use the existing matrix protocol and its bridges without the hassle and cost of self-hosting.

A very busy thread on HN.

 

The actual app/service.

 

I am not a developer of this app, just a user who finds matrix very very compelling.

Yeah, using matrix it's not super fun. The lag is very very high. So much bridging also causes a lot of troubleshooting and frankly not worth the effort.