Notes ·
Bitchat Brings Bluetooth Mesh Chat to the App Store
Bitchat is an open source, peer-to-peer messaging application that can send messages through nearby devices using a Bluetooth mesh network. It does not require phone numbers, user accounts, cellular service, or a central server.
The app is now available for free on the iPhone App Store. Devices relay messages through the mesh, allowing conversations to extend beyond the direct Bluetooth range of a single phone. It also supports encrypted private messages and can use internet-based transports when they are available.
I love this idea. It feels closer to radio than conventional messaging: open the app, see who is nearby, and communicate without first exchanging an email address or joining another centralized platform.
It could be useful at festivals, campgrounds, conferences, during network outages, or anywhere cellular service is overloaded or unavailable. The hard part is the same problem every mesh network faces. It needs other people nearby before it becomes useful.
Now I just need to find someone else running it.