- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
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Their “how it works” blog article is worth a read - they’re using a blackbox reverse engineering of the protocol (called PyPush) and re-implementing it natively in an android app, so there are no man-in-the-middle servers. It’s pretty bonkers given how difficult Apple’s spec-less tech can be to work with.
And Apple will work tirelessly, and litigate endlessly, to stop this from happening.
I read somewhere that RE for the sake of improving communications is allowed, or something along those lines.
Reverse engineering for the sake of ensuring compatibility. It’s not limited to communication.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S24TDRxEna4
SnazzyLabs speculates it won’t be shut down because of how it works, and that stopping this application would require a retooling of apple’s entire authentication system both server-side and across all devices.
Here is an alternative Piped link(s):
https://www.piped.video/watch?v=S24TDRxEna4
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
I’m open-source; check me out at GitHub.
$2 a month subscription? They want people to pay for this? That’s gonna be a problem for Apple, this is going to get shut down by the end of the week.
Edit: seems I was right 😂 https://www.macrumors.com/2023/12/08/beeper-mini-imessage-for-android-shutdown/
If I understand correctly, there’s some server usage implicated in the delivering of notifications, so it makes sense that it costs.
That and the fact that it’s a for-profit company expecting to be paid for their product.
I get why they want to charge money, that’s obvious. But they are charging money for another companies service - that’s not a good business plan. Especially when that other company is one of the largest in the world.
even if it was free apple would probably find a way to break it.
This seemed exciting to me, so I just downloaded it. The only thing you can do when you open it is sign in with Google, which throws an
error:nullmessage. Oh well! Better luck next time.Give it another try. I just signed in and I have already sent blue bubbles to my iOS friends!
Okay, I went through the troubleshooting and got it working. It’s pretty cool. I can edit, see iPhoners typing, reply directly to a text, add reactions to images, and edit a text. No fancy effects though, like the laser beams. I guess this is a pretty good solution until things become standardized. Thanks!
great, now we need an open source implementation
It is open source surprisingly!
https://github.com/beeper https://github.com/mautrix/imessage
[edit] I’m kinda wrong, see below
The iMessage bridge you linked isn’t the same as this new app I don’t think. Doesn’t that bridge require a Mac computer where this new app doesn’t?
My understanding is that when you use their app you also use bridge that they host which happens on something that runs Mac OS.
That was their old model, but this is a complete reimplementation of iMessage and requires no Apple ID, login details, etc. It’s E2E encrypted like all iMessage texts, and Beeper only knows that you have a message waiting, not the contents.
I stand corrected, thanks!
So, question of if they’re safe or not will come down to HOW they did the reverse engineering. If the same engineers that delved into the jailbroken iOS devices are the ones that wrote the code (which seems likely given the prototype came from a single person), they’re going to be in trouble. If they implemented a “clean room” reverse engineering though, then they’re likely safe from being sued over copyright violations. See Wiki
I was interested in Beeper until I saw that it was run by the guy who ran Pebble.
Massive red flag for me. This’ll be abandoned just like he did Pebble…
Pebble didn’t abandon itself, it was sold to Google who killed it.
The time to worry is if/when Beeper gets acquired.
Pebble was bought out by Fitbit, who got bought out by Google. I had the kickstarter Pebble and felt Eric did an awesome job. But really it was the Apple watch that killed Pebble in the marketplace tbh.
I still miss my OG Pebble sometimes. My wife says her Pebble Round was superior for what she actually uses a smartwatch for vs the Apple Watch she now has. When her Round failed, support quickly - but erroneously - sent her a brand new Time Steel as a replacement. In the midst of us trying to get it swapped for a Round the company shut down. It’s always stuck with me that the customer service was so “good” that they burned through all their cash.
I’ve been on free Beeper since the summer and it’s my primary messaging app now. Support has been personal, quick, and far and above the support I get from a lot of paid services. I just hope they don’t run out of runway, because Beeper is the happiest I’ve been with my messaging setup since Hangouts. I gladly signed up for Mini yesterday and will be happy to retire the used iPhone 8 I was using to keep my Android # active on iMessage.
Isn’t selling it abandoning it?
No, it’s selling it. The sale itself isn’t what killed it.
Companies/IP/Products get sold to other entities all the time, many continue on. What you’re upset at is the aftermath of the sale, so until such an event happens here I don’t see any reason to be concerned.
And, from what I recall, selling was the best option. They over extended themselves with the pebble color and steel and we’re going to go out of business anyway. I really miss my pebble though.
Although, what’s the worst that happens if Beeper dies in a couple months? Your bubbles turn green on iOS.
Media quality between platforms is finally getting addressed with Apple adopting RCS.
Only real gap is cross-messaging-platform end to end encryption, which is also on the roadmap for RCS. And if you’re really worried about security, handing over your iCloud credentials to a third party probably isn’t a great idea anyway.
deleted by creator
Am I the only one who can’t get into this app right now? when I click the Continue with Google button I get a toast saying “google sign in error.null”
I had to search it up in the Google Play store “Beeper: Mini” is the name
Just a heads up though it’s a paid service for $2 USD a month (7 day free trial)
I got the same error.
Edit: I just read the article you linked. Why do we need to sign in with Google at all? Granting an unknown publisher access to my Google account, which knows pretty much everything about me, including financial information, seems unwise.
They don’t have access to that info. Just name and email for subscriptions.
This is game changing.
