FIRECHAT

This Little-Known iOS Feature Will Change the Way We Connect

• By Christina Bonnington  
• A new iOS app called FireChat is blowing up in the App Store. But it’s not the app itself that’s causing such a stir, it’s the underlying networking technology it taps into.
  The idea behind FireChat is simple. It’s a chatting app. After registering with a name — no email address or other personal identifiers required — you’re dropped into a fast-moving chatroom of “Everyone” using it in your country. The interesting aspect, however, is the “Nearby” option. Here, the app uses Apple’s Multipeer Connectivity framework, essentially a peer-to-peer feature that lets you share messages (and soon photos) with other app users nearby, regardless of whether you have an actual Wi-Fi or cellular connection.
  You read that correctly. You’re able to send and receive messages even when you don’t have a data connection. FireChat accomplishes this magic by allowing each device to connect directly to others nearby using Bluetooth, peer-to-peer Wi-Fi, or traditional Wi-Fi networks. Because you’re connecting directly with other users, you don’t actually need to be connected over Wi-Fi or a cellular network.
  Needless to say, this is a big deal. Engineer Mattt Thompson notes that Apple’s Multipeer Connectivity APIs “allow developers to completely reimagine how mobile apps are built, and to redefine what is possible.” The technology can be used for everything from “collaborative editing and file sharing, to multiplayer gaming and sensor aggregation.”