Conversations: Secure XMPP Messaging App for Android
App stats
- receive data from Internet
- view network connections
- pair with Bluetooth devices
- full network access
- change your audio settings
- run at startup
- draw over other apps
- control vibration
- prevent device from sleeping
Other platforms
App summary
A free and open source Jabber/XMPP client for Android. Easy to use, reliable, battery friendly. With built-in support for images, group chats and e2e encryption.
Design principles
• Be as beautiful and easy to use as possible without sacrificing security or privacy
• Rely on existing, well established protocols
• Do not require a Google Account or specifically Google Cloud Messaging (GCM)
• Require as little permissions as possible
Features
• End-to-end encryption with either OMEMO or OpenPGP
• Encrypted audio and video calls (DLTS-SRTP)
• Sending and receiving images
• Intuitive UI that follows Android Design guidelines
• Pictures / Avatars for your Contacts
• Syncs with desktop client
• Conferences (with support for bookmarks)
• Address book integration
• Multiple Accounts / unified inbox
• Very low impact on battery life
XMPP Features
Conversations works with every XMPP server out there. However XMPP is an extensible protocol. These extensions are standardized as well in so called XEP’s. Conversations supports a couple of those to make the overall user experience better. There is a chance that your current XMPP server does not support these extensions. Therefore to get the most out of Conversations you should consider either switching to an
XMPP server that does or - even better - run your own XMPP server for you and your friends.
These XEPs are - as of now:
• XEP-0065: SOCKS5 Bytestreams (or mod_proxy65). Will be used to transfer files if both parties are behind a firewall (NAT).
• XEP-0163: Personal Eventing Protocol for avatars
• XEP-0191: Blocking command lets you blacklist spammers or block contacts without removing them from your roster.
• XEP-0198: Stream Management allows XMPP to survive small network outages and changes of the underlying TCP connection.
• XEP-0280: Message Carbons which automatically syncs the messages you send to your desktop client and thus allows you to switch seamlessly from your mobile client to your desktop client and back within one conversation.
• XEP-0237: Roster Versioning mainly to save bandwidth on poor mobile connections
• XEP-0313: Message Archive Management synchronize message history with the server. Catch up with messages that were sent while Conversations was offline.
• XEP-0352: Client State Indication lets the server know whether or not Conversations is in the background. Allows the server to save bandwidth by withholding unimportant packages.
• XEP-0363: HTTP File Upload allows you to share files in conferences and with offline contacts. Requires an additional component on your server.
User reviews
- Excellent focus on user security and privacy features.
- Open source with customization options and integration of open encryption protocols like OMEMO.
- Low battery usage and minimalistic design.
- Positive developer support and responsiveness to user feedback.
- Works well with multiple XMPP servers and accounts.
- Missing notifications for group chats (MUC).
- Issues with message delivery and double messages.
- Struggles with attachment handling and image quality.
- Inability to set unique ringtones for notifications.
- Restore from backup can fail or cause app issues.
- Developer responsiveness to issues and feature requests.
- Concerns around missing features compared to other messaging apps.
- App's focus on privacy and security.
- Notification issues after updates.
- Integration of OMEMO for secure messaging.
User reviews
Similar apps
Here are some Android apps that are similar to Conversations (Jabber / XMPP):