Columba
Shares rank 44 of 48 messaging apps by recommenders
Android messenger for the Reticulum mesh network that makes it easier to use. Some note that it is partly AI-generated.
Android messenger for the Reticulum mesh network that makes it easier to use. Some note that it is partly AI-generated.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Makes Reticulum easier to use
“it gets better with software like the Android messenger Columba”
Comment from 20 Jan 2026 in “Reticulum, a secure and anonymous mesh networking stack” “The Columba app seems to do a lot to bridge the usability gap”
Comment from 9 May 2026 in “An Introduction to Meshtastic” Works, unlike many Reticulum AI projects
“partially AI but unlike many Reticulum related scummy AI projects does work”
Comment from 8 May 2026 in “An Introduction to Meshtastic” Praised as a fantastic new app
“the fantastic new companion app Columba”
Comment from 23 Apr 2026 in “MeshCore development team splits over trademark dispute and AI-generated code”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Partly AI-generated
“partially AI but unlike many Reticulum related scummy AI projects does work”
Comment from 8 May 2026 in “An Introduction to Meshtastic”
Other messaging apps people recommend
The four most recommended other messaging apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 48 messaging apps, rankedWhat people said
4 of the 5 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“The Columba app seems to do a lot to bridge the usability gap”
“partially AI but unlike many Reticulum related scummy AI projects does work”
“the fantastic new companion app Columba”
“it gets better with software like the Android messenger Columba”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.