BlueChat is a free technology demonstration for text based peer-to-peer bluetooth connections between iPhones and/or iPod Touches. Bluetooth networking is potentially a little bit more private form of silent social networking than WiFi due to the very limited range of the signal. Unlike the internet, bluetooth connections are peer-to-peer, so there are no intermediate servers to spy on or record message content. The radio signal, however, can still be hijacked. BlueChat alerts you to the number of bluetooth peers connected via the iPhone OS.
New in version 1.0.2 are support for landscape orientation, sounds, color text and internationalization with language support for English, Italian and French. More languages will be added in future updates. The 'Send' button has been relocated to the upper left of the navigation bar to allow for sounds and more typing space. Sounds include vibrate (true vibration on iPhone and simulated vibration using the internal speaker of the iPod Touch 2G), kiss, laugh and snore. Simply tap a sound button on your iPhone and the sound plays on connected peers running BlueChat if they have audible feedback enabled (vibrate is always enabled) or displays an icon if audible feedback is disabled. A quick way to alert connected peers that a message is coming.
In the example above I (Me) am connected by bluetooth to one peer who is using an iPod Touch 2G named 'Eye Physics iPod'. The conversational history is recorded in the 'Receiver' section of BlueChat. I first sent out a vibration alert followed by the text message 'Hi'. Connected peer 'Eye Physics iPod' responded with a quick kiss which displays as an icon (instead of a sound effect) in my receiver because I have disabled audible feedback for near-silent operation on my device. I am now preparing to reply with the text message 'Where do you want to go for supper?'.
BlueChat requires iPhone OS 3.0 or greater. Scroll down for more screen captures and explanations. If you haven't figured it out by now the application icon is a pictograph of the spelling of 'BlueChat', ie a Blue C on a hat. Enjoy.
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2. Tap the Connect button to establish a peer-to-peer bluetooth connection. In this example we will connect two iPod Touches named 'Eye Physics iPod" and 'RadOnc iPod Touch'. To close an existing connection, tap Connect again and then select 'Cancel'. |
3. iPhoneOS 3.0 handles the connection interface. |
4. When prompted, accept the connection. |
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5. The bluetooth icon at the lower left turns blue when a connection is made and shows the number of connected peers as a red badge (e.g 1 peer is connected in this example). The connection/session status is monitored once per second using a timer. |
6. To send a message, tap in the send region and use the keyboard to type the message. Tap the Send button to send the message. The message region is automatically cleared after sending. You can send a message while the keyboard is visible. Tap the Done button at the upper right to dismiss the keyboard. |
7. Received messages appear in the receiver region. New messages are appended at the top of the message history so the most recent message can be read while keeping the keyboard visible. The trash button at the top right clears the message history. The current message history is saved when the program exits and is restored when next launched. In version 1.0.2 landscape orientation is supported. |
Examples of internationalization
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Italian |
French |