Beeper is back on Android, but it’s missing one major feature

Abstract

• Beeper’s new Android app offers a fresh, native design and universal chat support for various platforms such as Telegram and WhatsApp.
• The app is fast, stable and modern, with a long list of upcoming features on the way. However, native support for iMessage — previously Beeper’s bread and butter — isn’t coming.
• While existing Beeper users can access the new app for free in beta, paid memberships are on the horizon.

Do you remember Beeper? It’s been a few months, but at the end of last year it was one of the biggest stories in tech for a hot minute. While the core app has been around for a while, Beeper went supernova with the launch of a dedicated iMessage client for Android, one that – for a few glorious days in December – just worked. Then, let’s just say, the Empire was shaken. Months after the iMessage debacle came and went, Beeper is back with a brand new unified chat inbox for Android, and it’s quite stylish. Just don’t expect blue bubble support.

Beeper’s new app is just called Beeper (no “Cloud” or “Mini” in the name), and as the company’s announcement makes clear, this is indeed a complete overhaul from the ground up. The result is something that looks and feels completely native to Android in a way that, frankly, I’m not sure the previous Beeper client could manage. It’s even better when you enable dynamic themes in the settings, mirroring what you’d find in, say, Google’s Messages RCS app.

I tried out Beeper’s new Android app

And honestly, that’s a pretty strong start

I’ve been testing Beeper’s new Android app for the past few days, and while it’s clearly in its early stages — I’ve been getting at least one update a day, and usually more — it’s already in solid shape. Adding network connections is easy enough, and everything you’d expect here has been carried over from older apps. Telegram, Signal, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger — they’re all there. RCS and SMS support is also ready out of the box, and you can also connect on social and community platforms like Discord, Slack and Twitter.

Everything that today’s announcement promises about speed is true. The app looks super fluid, it’s full of tons of animations that are leagues above similar types of apps. Unified chat inboxes aren’t a new concept, but this one feels modern in a way you don’t see too often.

It is also surprisingly stable. I didn’t experience any app crashes, nor did I have any problems connecting to platforms like Signal, Telegram, and RCS. The only real headache I saw came down to the Telegram group using channels. Beeper, unable to grasp that organizational structure, instead threw everything into a single thread, making it difficult to follow the conversation. I’m not sure if we’ll see it fixed, but luckily, marking the topic low priority in Beeper’s desktop app hid it from my mobile inbox, a tip given directly to me by CEO Eric Migicovsky. It still requires me to open Telegram to participate in those rooms, but it seems a bit more organized.

There is plenty of room for improvement

And Beeper has big plans for the future

A lot is coming to Beeper, but iMessage support isn’t part of it.

That’s one of the gripes, by the way — you’ll need to already have Beeper to try this service. Fortunately, referrals are a thing, as well as a waiting list of companies to join the platform. Still, waiting a while to try out Beeper’s new app might not be such a bad idea. The list of upcoming features looks pretty promising: Android Auto support, message archiving, avatar-based DMs, and more. There is no downside to waiting when the list of pending improvements is this long.

Also, just to draw an even bigger circle around it: you won’t find iMessage support here. The existing bridge still works in the Beeper Mini and is on the list to finally come to this platform, but it’s a far cry from what the company offered in November. As was clear, the days of trying to make iMessage work on Android are in the rearview mirror, and frankly, I think users are better off thinking of Beeper as a unified inbox for everyone outside of the blue bubble world.

If you have a Beeper account, you can download this new app today in beta. It’s free for now, but if the “Subscription” link in the settings menu isn’t proof enough, the company confirmed in an announcement today that paid memberships will soon return to the platform. Like the list of upcoming features, we’ll have to wait for pricing details.