# Columba

5 Hacker News commenters recommended Columba and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Android messenger for the Reticulum mesh network that makes it easier to use. Some note that it is partly AI-generated.

## Why people recommend it

- Makes Reticulum easier to use (2 comments): "it gets better with software like the Android messenger Columba" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46689921)) "The Columba app seems to do a lot to bridge the usability gap" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48070906))
- Works, unlike many Reticulum AI projects (1 comments): "partially AI but unlike many Reticulum related scummy AI projects does work" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48062351))
- Praised as a fantastic new app (1 comments): "the fantastic new companion app Columba" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47879392))

## What people warn about

- Partly AI-generated (1 comments): "partially AI but unlike many Reticulum related scummy AI projects does work" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48062351))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [WhatsApp](https://hackerapproved.com/p/whatsapp.md): 300 recommend
- [iMessage](https://hackerapproved.com/p/imessage.md): 100 recommend
- [Conversations XMPP client](https://hackerapproved.com/p/conversations.md): 31 recommend
- [Tether (iMessage and SMS on Linux)](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tether.md): 22 recommend
- [Google Messages](https://hackerapproved.com/p/google-messages.md): 12 recommend

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Columba", https://hackerapproved.com/p/columba/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).