Mastodon, a Twitter alternative with open protocols and a decentralized design, now has an Android app. The platform released its iOS app last year.
Mastodon has a design similar to Twitter and boasts of 4.4 million users. The platform does not collect data, does not have a centralized database, and does not use algorithms in timeline feeds. It is powered by the open-source protocol ActivityPub, which is used by other platforms like Instagram-alternative PixelFed.
Mastodon's back end works pretty much like email; once users sign up, they can follow and communicate with any other user on any other community.
The Android app is similar to the iOS app; users can login to their account, receive notifications, send posts, and search posts. However, they cannot view their local timeline, i.e., see public posts from the current community.
The app is available on Play Store for free, and works on devices with Android 6.0 and newer.
