14 DAY TRIAL // Another useful application iPhone users might / should be interested in is Palringo's free rich messaging service (RMS) application. Palringo integrates with most existing IM services and "patches" the annoying lack of MMS support (picture messages) with Apple's iPhone. Best of all, the App Store-downloadable is free!
Besides supporting picture and text messaging, Palringo will soon support vocal instant messaging over the iPhone's data connection. As noted in the introduction, the free messaging app integrates with several existing popular instant-messaging (IM) services. Those include AOL's AIM, Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, Gadu Gadu, ICQ, Jabber and Windows Live Messenger. iChat, Apple's very own IM client, is also supported.
Using Palringo, you can stay connected to multiple messaging services at the same time, without having to switch between applications. Web-based messaging services are, of course, a thing of the past once you've downloaded and installed Palringo. The developers also note that, "in the current absence of multi-media messaging service (MMS) capabilities on the 3G iPhone, Palringo offers the ability to send and receive picture messages using the iPhone's data connection."
OK, but what does this "data connection" actually imply? Well, although the makers say "there are no hidden costs, catches or other charges" (not that they're lying), this is where you get charged, based on the plan you have chosen to go with when buying your iPhone. "Using Palringo will barely make a dent in an iPhone customer's data usage," says the company. Palringo will send/receive the equivalent of about 4,500 SMS messages for just one megabyte of data transfer. So, if your carrier charges say..., 30 cents for 1MB of data, this is what you're paying for the 4,500 text messages, 32 picture messages, or 15 minutes of vocal instant messages (send and receive). Needless to point out, if you have an unlimited data plan to go with your iPhone, all you need to do is just download the app now and start chatting.
The application is also said to launch and connect within seconds "with a single screen tap," after which it presents your contacts in a single, combined, presence-aware list, no matter the IM service your contacts are using.
Palringo CEO Kerry Ritz said: "Just as Apple has changed people's view of what it should be like to use a mobile phone, so Palringo aims to change the way people see messaging. Billions of people already use instant messaging on their home or work computers to communicate with each other. Palringo has added vocal instant messaging and picture messaging and has put IM on the iPhone - that's a great combination."
Palringo is available worldwide, not just on the iPhone, but on most cell phones released in the past couple of years, the company assures. Multi-national corporate users should find the service highly attractive, Palringo believes. Both the original iPhone and the newly-released 3G model are supported.
Vocal IM, which is already available on all other Palringo-supported platforms, will be making its way on the iPhone with the second release of Palringo.