What you need to know
- Beeper is a free application with an optional future paid subscription model that connects up to 14 chat services into one desktop and mobile application.
- Previously charged at $10 per month, the edition version dropped the fee and iMessage support after Apple implemented the lockout.
- Compatible with Windows and Android, among other popular platforms, Beeper supports messaging, group chats, images and videos, and other rich conversation elements.
After a period of exclusive access limited by a waiting list, Beeper has opened its universal chat app to everyone on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux and Android devices. The public launch follows Automattic’s acquisition of Beeper, which already owns website builder WordPress, blogging platform Tumblr and poll creator Crowdsignal.
Previously called Beeper Cloud, the pared-down version also ditches its more obvious 1990 pager aesthetic inspiration in favor of a more vibrant, overarching chat network theme as the official Beeper Android app leaves its beta status and stands alongside versions for Apple’s iPhone, iPad, macOS, and even ChromeOS alongside Windows and Linux.
Unfortunately, while iOS and macOS are supported, iMessage is not included after the development team had to abandon their efforts when Apple blocked Beeper to ‘protect’ the service. Still, it’s arguably the best option for consolidating your long list of chat apps in one accessible place with a universal inbox, connecting up to 14 different networks, including:
- – Telegram
- – What’s up
- – Signal
- – X (Twitter)
- – Facebook Messenger
- – Relaxed
- – Discord
- – Android SMS
- – Google messages (SMS/RCS)
- – IRC
- – Matrix
- – Google Chat
Beeper is available for free download, following the business model its developers announced in March 2023, removing the $10 monthly fee. It won’t necessarily stay that way forever, as the app’s FAQ page describes a plan to “offer an optional paid subscription at some point in the future.” Fortunately, the keyword “optional” is there, implying that basic functionality will remain for free users, and “additional features like the ability to add multiple accounts per network” will be reserved for paid, premium users.
I’ve tested Beeper for Windows and Android and it couldn’t be easier to set up
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I regularly use at least six of the fourteen chat apps that Beeper supports, potentially pushing it up to eight if I really want to read some quirky private messages on ‘that’ ex-bird network. Granted, I don’t have each installed as a separate app on my Windows 11 desktop, so I’m often slow to respond to conversations on a few more web-centric networks (sorry, LinkedIn.) Now, no I don’t have much of an excuse, because those conversations are grouped, albeit in a neat way, with a separate icon in the sidebar, with similar Instagram DMs.
Setting up Beeper in Windows 11 first is the best approach, since tracking the Android app on my Google Pixel smartphone freed me from any hard work other than entering a username and password once. Telegram and WhatsApp use admiralty QR codes to authorize logins, while most others stick to traditional logins, which are facilitated with saved passwords on Microsoft Edge or whatever browser you choose.
Beeper’s instruction messages rightly suggest that you keep your original chat apps installed, but turn off their notifications (except for voice and video calls; those aren’t supported yet). Allowing Beeper to display its notifications instead and access your contacts helps with relevant profile photos to identify contacts at a glance, regardless of whether you choose the “Pro” view (as I do), highlighting labels for each network.
(Beeper seems) familiar and even nostalgic to those like me who used Trillian at the turn of the millennium.
Once you’re done setting it up and working, it will feel familiar and even nostalgic to those like me who used Trillian at the turn of the millennium, which offered a similar solution for contacting friends separated over chat networks like MSN Messenger, ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, and Yahoo! ! Messenger.
Of course, technology has advanced significantly since then, and a focus on privacy and security has become a priority for Beeper’s development team as they rely on the open source ‘Matrix’ network protocol for no-access encryption and local recovery keys. However, end-to-end encryption can still be more efficient on a per-app basis for certain apps like WhatsApp and Signal.
Personally, I like it. The desktop app is simple but doesn’t look ugly, and the benefit of never missing a message on an infrequently visited service is self-explanatory. The only downside is that now I have to answer to all my friends and colleagues who have been left behind for too long reading (or do I have to?).