It is a question We’ve been wondering for years: Why isn’t iMessage on Android? Of course, we know the answer. Apple clearly enjoys using the social pressure of blue bubbles to convince more people to buy iPhones.
But you don’t have to put up with that. You don’t need an iPhone to use iMessage; if you have a Mac, or even just an iPad, you can use it. The person you’re talking to will see that the message is coming from your email address instead of your phone number, but other than that, it works normally. The main downside, of course, is that the messages won’t show up on your Android phone. Fortunately, there are ways around that, too. Here are the two best.
Beeper is a free app that combines messages from several different services, including Facebook Messenger, Signal, LinkedIn, Twitter DMS, and even Slack. Even better, it’s compatible with iMessage. The app is currently only available to people who sign up on a waiting list; I ended up waiting a whole year. But in a few months it will be available to everyone, according to the company.
To start using Beeper, you’ll need to set up the desktop version on a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer, after which you can start adding networks. To sign in to iMessage, you’ll first need an Apple account. If you own an Apple device, you probably already have one, but you can sign up here otherwise.
Sign in to that Apple account in the Chat Networks section of Beeper settings.
Beeper via Justin Pot
You’ll be told that a Mac in Chicago is trying to connect to your iMessage; this is normal. (In order to offer this service, Beeper has a fleet of Macs that log into iMessage and run it constantly). You will be prompted for a two-factor authentication code. This is a lot of confidence to place in a company, of course, and you should definitely do some research and review company information. Privacy Policy before continuing. Personally, I feel good about using the service, but I understand why others don’t.
