Meerkat Lands on Android (Before Rival Periscope)

Periscope may have the support of Twitter propelling it to success, but rival Meerkat just earned a leg-up in the fight for live video-streaming supremacy.

Previously limited to iOS devices, Meerkat is now available on Android as well. Twitter's Periscope can't say the same — at least for now.

Launched in beta on Friday, the new Meerkat Android app, like its iOS counterpart, lets you instantly stream live video from your phone to your Twitter followers. Simply fire up the app, press "Stream," and your live video stream will show up in your Twitter follower's feeds.

When your followers have the app, they'll also get a push notification to watch your live stream, and be able to comment on it. As with the iOS version, people can only watch your stream live — there are to reruns.

After launching today in Google Play for devices running Android 4.2 and up, the beta app has already been downloaded more than 100,000 times. At this point, it only has a rating of 2.5 stars out of 5, and some reviewers are complaining that they can't get past the loading screen. One user recommended uninstalling then reinstalling the app if you're having problems getting it to run.

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Meerkat last month first announced plans to expand to Android, and opened up the app to external beta testers.

The app was a surprise hit on iOS, but has faced some big challenges thus far. Shortly after its release, Meerkat was cut off from Twitter's social graph, making it harder for users to find each other and receive notifications when friends start a new stream.

Meerkat tried to remedy this with an update that added recommendations for people you might want to follow, the ability to follow users from within their streams, and listings of other Meerkat streams that your friends like. Shortly thereafter, Twitter launched Periscope and tried to drum up interest by asking celebrities to switch from Meerkat.

The move into the Android, however, could give Meerkat an extra boost, allowing it to compete more readily with Twitter's iPhone-only service.

For more, see PCMag's review of Meerkat for iPhone and the slideshow above.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade.

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes.

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app.

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth.

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light.

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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