PLSChat

Android & GrapheneOS Companion App

Android 8.0+ (API 26) GrapheneOS ready
⬇ Download PLSChat.apk

Version 1.5 · 16 October 2026. Upgrading from an older copy? Uninstall the old app first.

Install

  1. Tap Download PLSChat.apk above.
  2. Open the downloaded file. Android (and GrapheneOS) will ask to allow installing from this source — approve it for your browser or files app.
  3. Open PLSChat, type the unit's network name (e.g. PLSChat-6983E61C) and its hotspot password (default pls12345), and tap Connect. The app remembers it for one-tap connecting next time.

Connect to your device

  1. Power on your PLSChat device and wait for its hotspot — its screen shows 192.168.4.1.
  2. In the app, tap Connect and approve Android's “connect to this network?” prompt. (Or join the hotspot in Android Settings first, then tap I've already joined it in Settings.)
  3. The device's chat interface opens right inside the app.

Using a VPN, Tor or Orbot?

A PLSChat device is a local device with no internet, so a VPN or Tor (Orbot) cannot reach it — traffic sent through the tunnel will never find 192.168.4.1. You'll see “couldn't reach the device” or “cannot bind to network”.

Keep your VPN on, but let PLSChat go direct:

  1. Exclude PLSChat from the VPN/Orbot. In Orbot's per-app mode, make sure PLSChat is not selected to route through Tor (excluded apps connect directly).
  2. On GrapheneOS, also turn off Settings → Network & internet → VPN → (gear) → “Block connections without VPN”, which otherwise blocks the app's direct connection.

Or simply switch the VPN off while using PLSChat — everything else stays protected.

Made for GrapheneOS

On GrapheneOS and modern stock Android, a WiFi network with no internet — like a PLSChat device's hotspot — is often refused or silently dropped. This app binds its own process directly to the PLSChat network via ConnectivityManager, so the device UI loads every time. No Google services, no extra dependencies, nothing phones home.

Why an app?

A PLSChat device serves its whole interface from its own WiFi hotspot at 192.168.4.1. The app opens that interface in a native WebView over the bound connection — the same chat UI, made reliable on a phone.

Help: [email protected]