IM + today launches its own cross-platform Beep multimedia messaging service

Good afternoon, Habr!

It so happened that I already wrote habraposts about innovations in the popular IM + client twice. After some time, I was pleasantly surprised when I received an invitation from developers to take part in the open beta test of their new Beep multimedia messaging service, which was actively held on various community sites (Android version on xda-developers.com, Blackberry - on blackberrys.ru, etc.)
I, in turn, tested the operation of the new IM + c Beep on Android 4.0 ICS.

Today the official launch of this service took place, and under the habrakat I will write a few words about it and my personal impressions.



First of all, it should be noted that the idea of ​​the service is not new or even original - IM clients have learned to share files quite a long time ago.

The new service is positioned as a free alternative to SMS and MMS - in fact, if data transfer is not via Wi-Fi, but via a mobile network, traffic is still paid by the user. Fortunately, it is usually cheaper than SMS and / or MMS messages.



To exchange multimedia content, you do not need to create a separate contact list - all users who have IM + with Beep installed (and whose phone number matches the phone number in your address book) are displayed automatically. Personally, I don’t really like this approach, because if there are a lot of working and temporary contacts in the address book, all users using Beep will be added to the general list.

Comparison with existing analogues in general shows the presence of all relevant functions in Beep. Asterisks indicate versions of applications that are not optimized for tablets.



Pleasant moment - Beep is completely free both in Lite and in the Pro version of IM +.

In the work, the service showed itself ... Normal :) Photos and videos are not uploaded too quickly, when sent to another user, he receives a regular link to the downloaded content. You can send a photo, video, voice note or a link to a location. Delivery alerts work flawlessly. Push notifications are supported on all platforms.

The advantage of Beep can be considered its free and accessibility for all platforms - with the advent of this service it will be possible to reduce the list of installed programs on the device.

As for the prospects, the new service will have to win an audience in difficult times - in addition to “stand-alone” applications (such as WhatsApp or Skype), it will have to compete with the built-in content exchange tools - iMessage for iOS, Gtalk \ Google+ for Android.

PS: As a bonus and motivation for installing IM + with Beep, it includes a new Rovio Angry Birds theme (for the iOS version) :)

PPS: And due to the new product, the cost of the Pro version of IM + will be temporarily reduced to $ 1.99 (for all platforms).