Finally…
Much Ado
A London-based smartphone startup dubbed Nothing — yes, just Nothing — is readying to launch an app called Nothing Chats, a messaging service that turns tragic green Android texts into blue-bubbled iMessages, The New York Times reports.
Green bubble stigma exists. Those with Androids are cursed with the anxiety of ruining group chat vibes, not being able to seamlessly press the little heart and exclamation reacts on messages, and oft-wretched photo and video quality. Nothing Chats, which is powered by blue bubble-ifying tech from Sunbird, seeks to remedy green bubble stressors for its users — sans the need to actually succumb to the pressure of buying an iPhone, that is.
“We understand that the blue bubble vs. green bubble dilemma, especially in North America — although seemingly ridiculous — is real,” Carl Pei, Nothing’s CEO and cofounder, told the NYT in a statement. “Nothing Chats allows for freedom of communication between anyone regardless of their brand of smartphone — which is how it should be.”
Nothing
Per the NYT, Nothing Chats does have some drawbacks. Those adorable and convenient react buttons don’t quite work yet, and sometimes it apparently takes several tries to successfully send a message. It’s also not exactly open-invite, either: for the time being, Nothing Chats will only be available for users of Nothing’s Phone (2). Yes, it’s called the Phone (2).
But if you’re a non-Nothing Android user, you’re not totally out of luck. Although the waitlist is astronomical, an open-source app called Beeper also allows Android users access to iMessage. And for the tech-savvy Android users among us who don’t want to hang out in Beeper’s waiting room for the foreseeable future, another open-source platform, BlueBubbles, might also be a good option.
Should apps like this climb in popularity, it’ll be interesting to see what action Apple takes. The folks behind Nothing Chat don’t seem too worried, though. They say it’s perfectly legal, and after all, according to them, they’re making texting better for everyone — Apple and Android users alike.
“There’s nothing illegal about this setup,” Pei told the NYT, adding that the company is “so small that it will look really bad if Apple takes any action.”
“We don’t see a scenario where Apple tries to, or can, block these messages,” added Danny Mizrahi, CEO of the app developer, Sunbird. “Apple’s focus has openly been on providing the best experience to their end users and both Nothing Chats and Sunbird help with that.”
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