First steps
Join a channel
Channels are Pombo's group spaces. You can find them two ways:
- Explore — the in-app discovery view listing public channels.
- Direct link — any channel can be shared as a URL. Opening the link takes you straight there. Try the official Pombo channel: app.pombo.cc/#/channel/…
Joining and chatting is always free — no gas, no fees.
There are three kinds of channels; the app shows which is which:
| Type | Who can read | Who can write |
|---|---|---|
| Public | Everyone | Everyone |
| Password | Anyone with the shared password | Anyone with the password |
| On-chain (native) | Members authorized by Ethereum address | Authorized members |
More detail in Channels and ownership.
Send a message
Type and send — messages propagate peer-to-peer over the Streamr Network and are persisted by storage nodes so people who join later (or come back online) can read the history. Reactions, edits, deletes, and replies work as you'd expect.
Direct messages
You can DM anyone with an Ethereum address — they don't need to be online, and you don't need to be "friends" first. Enter their address (or ENS name) and write.
DMs are end-to-end encrypted with sealed sender: only the recipient can read the message, and only the recipient learns who sent it. See Encryption.
Create your own channel
Creating a channel registers streams on Polygon PoS, which costs a small network fee in POL (the only paid action in Pombo). See Managing channels.
Before you go further
Two minutes now saves your account later: export a backup. There is no account recovery without it.