As of summer 2021, Magpi has added another way to collect data from the field: Magpi Chat. Similar to Magpi's interactive SMS (iSMS) system, which uses a phone's built-in SMS capabilities, Magpi Chat creates a back-and-forth conversation between the Magpi system and the user of the mobile phone. Additionally, neither iSMS nor Chat require any app to be installed on the user's mobile phone.
Also, unlike iSMS, because Chat runs in the user's browser using the internet (not the SMS system) there are no per-message charges — making it very inexpensive for most purposes.
To summarize:
- no mobile app required
- runs in the browser on any phone (or laptop, or tablet, or desktop)
- no per-message charges (so cheap, cheap, cheap!)
If you're interested in using Magpi's brand-new Chat, you are welcome to check it out in beta at beta.magpi.com or contact us for a free demo. We'd love to show you around.
Chat on an iPhone
Chat on a laptop browser (click to enlarge)
