Hey HN, proud to share balto, an API to send iMessages from a new phone number. I originally built this out to take advantage of the iMessage features (specifically read receipts and videos) after sadly learning that these features are severely limited when using Twilio or other SMS providers.
From there I went down a crazy rabbit hole, talking to apple support, shopping on eBay for an old iPhone, digging through poorly documented JXA (javascript to control your mac), and eventually landing on a MVP which today supports sending new iMessages from a custom phone number and looking at read receipts (if the other party has them turned on); with many more features on the way (think full videos, audio recording, tapbacks, group chats, etc.)
Love this community and the valuable feedback y’all provide!
From there I went down a crazy rabbit hole, talking to apple support, shopping on eBay for an old iPhone, digging through poorly documented JXA (javascript to control your mac), and eventually landing on a MVP which today supports sending new iMessages from a custom phone number and looking at read receipts (if the other party has them turned on); with many more features on the way (think full videos, audio recording, tapbacks, group chats, etc.)
Love this community and the valuable feedback y’all provide!