The latest articles on DEV Community by Cemil Tan (@ctere1). https://dev.to/ctere1 https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F1073768%2Fee69dd50-fa8a-495a-a118-255f92154aac.png https://dev.to/ctere1 en Cemil Tan Fri, 20 Mar 2026 21:55:09 +0000 https://dev.to/ctere1/building-a-real-time-chat-app-with-react-native-firebase-expo-16o7 https://dev.to/ctere1/building-a-real-time-chat-app-with-react-native-firebase-expo-16o7 <p>I recently updated my <strong>React Native chat app</strong>, powered by <strong>Expo</strong> and <strong>Firebase</strong>. The app supports:</p> <ul> <li>Direct and group messaging </li> <li>Sending images and videos </li> <li>Local notifications </li> <li>Notes-to-self</li> </ul> <p>The architecture uses <strong>React Contexts</strong> for authentication and unread message management, <strong>FlatLists</strong> for smooth performance, and <strong>centralized services</strong> for chat operations. This keeps the app scalable, modular, and easy to maintain.</p> <blockquote> <p>⚡ Technology highlight: While messages are securely stored in Firebase now, I plan to implement <strong>end-to-end encryption (E2EE)</strong> in the future, ensuring only the sender and recipient can read messages.</p> </blockquote> <p>The project was a great exercise in <strong>mobile app architecture, real-time data handling, and modern React Native development</strong>. </p> <p>Check it out on GitHub: <a href="https://github.com/Ctere1/react-native-chat" rel="noopener noreferrer">React Native Chat</a></p> <p>💬 I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback! Feel free to share your suggestions or experiences with similar projects.</p> reactnative opensource mobile javascript