Oppo is working on p2p communication without internet connection on smartphones

Oppo has announced MeshTalk. With the technology, Oppo users should be able to exchange messages and voice within a radius of 3 km without having to be connected to networks for GSM, mobile internet or Wi-Fi.

Oppo introduced MeshTalk at MWC Shanghai 2019, where the company also showcased its concept smartphone with a front-facing camera. The company describes that a local network is built up on an ad-hoc basis for MeshTalk. The signal range in an open field is a radius of up to three kilometers and thanks to peer-to-peer mesh technology, that radius could also be reached in busy city environments. To make that possible, other Oppo smartphones serve as relays to forward the signal.

The manufacturer does not clarify exactly how the technology works. Oppo does report that it has developed its own communication chip for MeshTalk. The company says that it can also be used for emergency communications, for example, and MeshTalk would have little impact on battery life. It is still unknown when the technology will first appear in smartphones.

It is not the first time that companies have used mesh technology to enable local communication between smartphones. In 2017, IBM and subsidiary The Weather Company demonstrated a similar technique called Mesh Network Alerts. For the peer-to-peer connection, IBM used WiFi and Bluetooth to allow smartphones without an internet connection to send alerts. Oppo reports that no Bluetooth connection is required for MeshTalk.