FireChat gives you access to free chatting, but don’t expect it to replace your traditional chat applications

In response to the hike in data tariffs social media has been buzzing with a host of solutions to avert the impending dark ages of expensive data. The most popular here is FireChat, a completely free “off-the-grid” application set to eliminate the need for a service provider altogether.

Here is how it works.

So the application uses what they call a peer-to-peer mesh network with bluetooth being the transmission media.

Basically it is more effective the more crowded the users are in an area as this creates more links/paths that your message can take to get to the intended recipient.

So you send a message to an individual who is a relatively healthy distance away, the message passes through several other phones that contribute to its path to the recipient.

The message is encrypted so the only person able to view it is the intended recipient.

What if the person you are trying to reach is beyond the reach of your localised network?

In that case now if anyone in the network goes online (wifi) then the message is sent online and the recipient can receive it when they connect to the internet (wifi) or if by the biggest coincidence known in the history of coincidences you pass by the recipient of the message and both your devices have bluetooth enabled.

After a couple of runs at the office we had it working and it does work as a real time instant messaging tool. We just don’t think it will be replacing your regular messaging apps anytime soon mainly because:

1. Bluetooth is limited to a range of 10 meters for the bigger portion of smartphones meaning for effective communication you will need to always be moving with a crowd.
2. Reach of the network is very limited due to it being an offline (off-the-grid) network and it will only take one individual to casually wander off and break the network.
3. It is not completely self reliant. At one time it will require the assistance of the grid even though it specifies it restricts itself to wifi.

The future we see in this app is maybe communication in an office building, or some place with a healthy population density. How we see it is a fashionably dressed walkie talkie.