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Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

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Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#62

My first thought is "was Apple behind this?" I understand that they claim to have reverse engineered it...but if it's such a trivial conversation exchange, it is a bit surprising this hasn't been utilized before. Seems convenient given the loud exchanges happening about RCS and the like. And unlike RCS, iMessages actually has E2E baked in. The next thought it the utilization for abuse such as spam. E2E is wonderful b…

I don’t think so. The security researcher is a kid in high school that seems really fucking sharp.

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#63
Hi Eric! Big fan of Beeper, Pebble, and hopefully the yet-to-be small android phone. I had some questions that I was ill-equipped to answer, and hoped I could throw them your way!

When I installed beeper, I mentioned it to my friends that I was using it as a bridge for Signal. They threw a pretty big conniption about the implementation and the fact that all our messages were being routed through an unknown server in Germany with source code we could not read or audit (the Synapse/Matrix server beeper.com, as I understand it).

There were also some unfounded tinfoil-hat allegations that Beeper is an intelligence honeypot meant to slurp up all Signal encrypted comms that pass through its Matrix bridge, before forwarding them (although I don't give those any credence)

What reassurances might I be able to provide them? The UX for the Signal app has been going somewhat downhill as of late and I'd like to keep using Beeper if I can assuage their fears.

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#64

From their blogpost: https://blog.beeper.com/p/beeper-cloud-and-product-roadmap > Everything changed in August when a security researcher reverse engineered the iMessage protocol. > At a high level, here’s our product plan for the near future (in very rough order, and very subject to change): > Add support for SMS, WhatsApp and Signal into Beeper Mini, using the same end-to-end encrypted client-side connection archit…

Beeper (Cloud) has been around for 3 years. It supports iMessage, Whatsapp, Signal and 12 other chat networks. We have 100,000 users on Beeper Cloud.

We haven't had a single problem like the one you're describing. Not to say it will never happen.

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#65
post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I give it a week, tops. The next iOS update at the latest.

They’re gonna break iMessage for the ~50% of population not on the latest version of iOS next week?

...They obviously would do it in a way that doesn't do that? Do you think this company can outsmart them in the long-run?

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#67

I'm on the fence about using this. I don't want to switch all my conversations over to iMessage and then have Apple figure out how to ban this. That kind of feels like a recipe for lost messages.

Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#68

Isnt Apple adopting RCS and won't that solve the green / blue bubble issue? Personally if it's a business / marketing advantage unless their hand is forced for business reasons they should never change it.

Green/blue bubble is about the prior probabilities people use to make assumptions about others. E.g., if you use Android/iPhone, there is a prior probability of x% of being y type of person. WhatsApp/Signal have been available for a long time for anyone that has wanted group chats with modern capabilities.

WhatsApp/Signal involve other people you want to communicate with having those apps, which is fairly unlikely in the US (at least outside of tech/international social groups). Only chat apps out here you can count on are facebook messenger, sms/rcs, groupme, or imessage. iMessage is probably the best of these.

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#69

From their blogpost: https://blog.beeper.com/p/beeper-cloud-and-product-roadmap > Everything changed in August when a security researcher reverse engineered the iMessage protocol. > At a high level, here’s our product plan for the near future (in very rough order, and very subject to change): > Add support for SMS, WhatsApp and Signal into Beeper Mini, using the same end-to-end encrypted client-side connection archit…

> Signal is the same, [...], the only official clients are the CLI and the ones they release

Is there an officially supported CLI for Signal? Please tell me it's true, that would mean so much for small scale automation!

Re: Show HN: Beeper Mini – iMessage client for Android

#70

From their blogpost: https://blog.beeper.com/p/beeper-cloud-and-product-roadmap > Everything changed in August when a security researcher reverse engineered the iMessage protocol. > At a high level, here’s our product plan for the near future (in very rough order, and very subject to change): > Add support for SMS, WhatsApp and Signal into Beeper Mini, using the same end-to-end encrypted client-side connection archit…

When TOSes forbid interoperability, breaking them is just.
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