Beeper's all-in-one messenger updated with better encryption and paid perks
TL;DR The all-in-one messaging app, Beeper, is getting new security features that enhance chat encryption.
It also adds new paid 'Plus' and 'Plus Plus' tiers with features such as message scheduling, incognito mode, and multiple accounts for the same apps.
However, there's still no mention of iMessage support, which was abandoned in late 2023 after Apple repeatedly shot down Beeper's efforts.
If you juggle multiple messaging apps and have ever tried to search for a solution to consolidate them, you might have stumbled upon Beeper. It is also known as the app that attempted to break through Apple's walled garden, allowing non-Apple users to send blue-bubble texts from an Android device. Although Beeper failed to achieve a permanent solution to the Apple problem, it has handled the consolidation part well and is now building upon it to bring better security to chats, along with some premium features.
Beeper recently announced it was overhauling the tech stack for more secure chats. While it previously relayed messages from multiple apps through an online interface called Beeper Cloud, the new app now connects directly to individual messaging apps. In essence, that allows messages protected with end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for all messaging platforms that inherently support it.
In its previous version, Beeper supported encryption for select messengers, including WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. However, messages would undergo two stages of encryption and decryption: first, when the message was sent from the Beeper app to the cloud bridge, and then again at the bridge before it was sent to the particular app's servers. The new update cuts the extra step in between, sending messages directly to the respective apps.
In addition to the updated chat relay, Beeper is introducing a premium model with extra perks. Beeper Plus starts at $9.99 and introduces features such as: support for up to three accounts from the same app,
message scheduling and reminders,
Incognito mode to view messages without sending read receipts or appearing online,
voice note transcriptions,
custom app icons, and
the ability to add up to ten accounts, up from five on the free version.
Another 'Beeper Plus Plus' tier costs $49.99 a month and removes limits on the number of accounts.
Beeper
Additionally, as a perk to the existing Beeper users, earlier free-tier users will be able to add up to 12 accounts for free. Meanwhile, those who previously paid $10 to get early access to Beeper before it went completely free in March 2023 will now be eligible for lifetime free Beeper Plus access. However, there is no mention of iMessage support returning, and we can assume the folks behind the chat app have laid the topic to rest after open-sourcing its iMessage bridge in December 2023 and later being acquired by Automattic.
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