Menneisyys Releasing Instant Messaging Roundup

[Paul Martin]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.pocketpcmag.com/blogs/index.php?blog=3&title=into_instant_messaging_do_check_out_ocro&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1' target='_blank'>http://www.pocketpcmag.com/blogs/in...1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1</a><br /><br /></div><i>"Now, “only” the heart of the entire roundup, the <a href="http://www.winmobiletech.com/022007Messengers/chart.html">Comparison &amp; Feature Chart</a> is (mostly) ready (with some 130 (!) screenshots linked from there). Still, particularly if you already know how I structure my comparison charts and have also read at least some of my previous IRC client-related articles, you’ll find the chart immensely useful. And, again, don’t forget to check out <a href="http://www.octro.com/">OctroTalk</a> if you’re into instant messaging on the Pocket PC. You may also want to check out <a href="http://www.ppcgeeks.com/octro-new-im-client-w-voip-support-1-05-on-1-3-07-t1459.html">this thread</a> for more information."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/Menneisyys_IM_chart.jpg" /><br /><br />Though the review is a work in progress, you can still check out the massive chart <b>Menneisyys</b> has prepared, comparing IM+ 4.3, Octro 0.9, WM6 Live Messenger, Pre- WM6 MSN Messenger, Agile Messenger, imov Messenger Basic / Enterprise, Pocket ICQ, and IRC clients. If you've been thinking about using IM on your mobile device, it's definitely worth checking out.<br /><br /><b>UPDATE</b>:<br /><b>Menneisyys</b> has finished the <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=431691">Windows Mobile Instant Messaging Bible</a> and posted it to our forums. Thanks for the great work, Menneisyys.

[Menneisyys]

Wow, thanks for the frontpage! :)

I'm still working on the WebMessenger column and will also include all the major, current IRC clients instead of "just" having a one-column IRC client summary (that is, I'll include at least wmIRC, zsIRC and PocketIRC in the chart as separate entries).

In the meantime, comments are surely welcome :)

[Paul Martin]

See, now you need to hurry up and finish it. :D

[Menneisyys]

See, now you need to hurry up and finish it. :D

Yeah, hopefully it'll be ready tomorrow - the WebMessenger column is about 50% ready already.

[bnycastro]

just like to say that all the comparisons and data you show the community is awesome! keep it M!!! the FORCE is strong in you... :D

[paschott]

Wow, that's one huge chart. I was wondering about one thing that seemed to be missing and maybe it's just MSN Messenger that does this on PPC. How many of these let you disable notifications when people log on or off? I used MSN briefly on my PPC, but the constant on/offline made me ditch it after &lt; 30 minutes of use.

Thanks for the plug for Octro - I'll have to give that a try (at least for the next week or so).

-Pete

[JesterMania]

Wow, I can't wait for this round-up. I've always been a fan of instant messaging and to have these available on a PPC fully compared is a very good thing. I'm personally looking forward to the official release of the new WM6 Live Messenger.

[Menneisyys]

UPDATE (02/25/2007 10:50 CET):

A completely new column discussing Webmessenger Mobile Instant Messenger for Pocket PC 2003 has been added; (compared to the last update some 12-13 hours ago) two new rows (“Text formatting (AIM : full formatting; Yahoo: Bold / Italic / Underlined; IRC: the same + colors + inverse)? (MSN: Edit / Change font only changes the font of the entire current / following messages; that is, it offers no real formatting capabilities; ICQ and Google Talk: absolutely no formatting capabilities)” and “Quick edit shortcuts (Ctrl-A, Delete, Ctrl+arrow etc)”) and a half-row (“Smiley output”) added, along with a lot of other smaller edits/additions.

Dunno when the article gets ready; it’s highly possible only tomorrow. Be patient :)

In the meantime, feel free to comment on the information already available.

[SteveHoward999]

I've not really used IM woth PocketPC for anything more than a bit of fun. However I use it all the time on PC. I discovered that my Nokia E62 has several IM options, but most use SMS to communicate - which can incur charges if you don't have a big enough SMS plan. There are some data SMS solutions, but few are free, and some are subscription!

So my question, for this review, is do any of the reviewed options use SMS to communicate? Or are they all data only?

I coiuld also ask ... Is the SMS communication thing an invention of the Corporate money-grabbers at Cingular? ;-)

[Menneisyys]

I've not really used IM woth PocketPC for anything more than a bit of fun. However I use it all the time on PC. I discovered that my Nokia E62 has several IM options, but most use SMS to communicate - which can incur charges if you don't have a big enough SMS plan. There are some data SMS solutions, but few are free, and some are subscription!

So my question, for this review, is do any of the reviewed options use SMS to communicate? Or are they all data only?

I coiuld also ask ... Is the SMS communication thing an invention of the Corporate money-grabbers at Cingular? ;-)

VeriChat (which I won't review as it only works in the US, while I'm located in Europe, so, I don't even have the chance to give it a try) is SMS-only. Also, PocketICQ (as with the desktop ICQ client) has explicit SMS-based messaging capabilities.

[ikesler]

VeriChat (which I won't review as it only works in the US, while I'm located in Europe, so, I don't even have the chance to give it a try) is SMS-only. Also, PocketICQ (as with the desktop ICQ client) has explicit SMS-based messaging capabilities.

I use Verichat here in the US and as long as the servers keep running... this is the best IM app period. The SMS notification is KEY if you ask me, so the battery life doesnt' die out on you. But Nokia is closing down shop..... so I hope someone adds this functionality to their own IM app.

[SteveHoward999]

I use Verichat here in the US and as long as the servers keep running... this is the best IM app period. The SMS notification is KEY if you ask me, so the battery life doesnt' die out on you. But Nokia is closing down shop..... so I hope someone adds this functionality to their own IM app.

I was asking because I absolutely do NOT want to have to pay for IMing on a per use basis. Cingular wants 15 cents for every SMS sent or received. I could burn up a lot of money in a ten minute chat with my wofe from the airport! Of course I could pay for unlimites SMS, but most of the time I don't use more than 4 or 5 SMS a month, and I already pay for unlimited Data, so I want data-based IM, not SMS-based.

[Menneisyys]

I use Verichat here in the US and as long as the servers keep running... this is the best IM app period. The SMS notification is KEY if you ask me, so the battery life doesnt' die out on you. But Nokia is closing down shop..... so I hope someone adds this functionality to their own IM app.

I was asking because I absolutely do NOT want to have to pay for IMing on a per use basis. Cingular wants 15 cents for every SMS sent or received. I could burn up a lot of money in a ten minute chat with my wofe from the airport! Of course I could pay for unlimites SMS, but most of the time I don't use more than 4 or 5 SMS a month, and I already pay for unlimited Data, so I want data-based IM, not SMS-based.

All the apps in the chart are data-based by default (unless you explicitly configure / ask (some of) them to use SMS messages instead of a constant data connection) so you won't run into problems.

I'll publish a list of threads that discuss this problem BTW.

[Menneisyys]

Some more info, SMS-wise (sorry, the section has been taken from the draft version of the article; this is why I'm using non-embedded links):

First comes, of course, the discontinued VeriChat.

Then, there are some other
SMS Threader - v1.17 http://pocketpcfreewares.com/en/index.php?soft=1627 (also see http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=283632 )

Also, Palm’s well-known SMS threader application http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=280256 is really worth mentioning.

The built-in AIM client in the iPAQ 6315 also used SMS messages http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=31764 , while the old one didn’t use SMS’es. The same stands for the AIM messenger coming with the T-Mobile MDA http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=260280

Finally, PocketICQ, which has also been mentioned in the chart.

[Menneisyys]

Chart further updated; for example, with info on well-known IM app Verichat by (ex-)Intellisync.

[JesterMania]

All the apps in the chart are data-based by default

You know, that actually brings up a question that has been bothering me a little for some time. Can you give me a rough idea of how much data these IM applications use? I'm considering getting a data plan purely for IM'ing (no e-mails, no web surfing, etc. because data is so expensive here in Canada) but am interested to find out how data intensive these applications are. If you can give me some insight I'd really appreciate it!

[Menneisyys]

All the apps in the chart are data-based by default

You know, that actually brings up a question that has been bothering me a little for some time. Can you give me a rough idea of how much data these IM applications use? I'm considering getting a data plan purely for IM'ing (no e-mails, no web surfing, etc. because data is so expensive here in Canada) but am interested to find out how data intensive these applications are. If you can give me some insight I'd really appreciate it!

So far, I've only made extensive benchmarks of MSN. Its data usage is pretty insignificiant - say, 100-200 kbytes a day AT MOST while idling. Its logon bandwidth usage is very small too - around 3 kbytes.

I'll try to make some real data usage benchmarks of the other titles / protocols too to see whether there are problematic titles. I'll really try to make some bechmarks like this.

[Menneisyys]

UPDATES (02/25/2007 13:00 CET):

- I’ve greatly enhanced the IRC column with current, related info on the latest wmIRC and PocketIRC versions.

- added a completely new row with some real bandwidth usage data. As can be seen, all clients (except for Octro, of which the central server seems to be currently down, not allowing for any kind of connection) have very small bandwidth usage with MSN and while waiting for incoming messages; about ~3 kbytes / 10 minutes; that is, ~450kbytes a 24-hour day. If you have a sufficiently (bigger than 20-30M) large data plan, allowing persistent cellular data connection all the time you’re awake won’t really have a very bad effect on your bill (only on your battery life, if you don’t, for example, disable UMTS / HSDPA if your mobile uses them instead of the much more battery-friendly GPRS).

- additional cleanups / small modifications

[JesterMania]

- added a completely new row with some real bandwidth usage data. As can be seen, all clients (except for Octro, of which the central server seems to be currently down, not allowing for any kind of connection) have very small bandwidth usage with MSN and while waiting for incoming messages; about ~3 kbytes / 10 minutes; that is, ~450kbytes a 24-hour day. If you have a sufficiently (bigger than 20-30M) large data plan, allowing persistent cellular data connection all the time you’re awake won’t really have a very bad effect on your bill (only on your battery life, if you don’t, for example, disable UMTS / HSDPA if your mobile uses them instead of the much more battery-friendly GPRS).

Wow, that was quick! That was exactly what I was looking for, thank you so much :mrgreen: .

[Menneisyys]

- added a completely new row with some real bandwidth usage data. As can be seen, all clients (except for Octro, of which the central server seems to be currently down, not allowing for any kind of connection) have very small bandwidth usage with MSN and while waiting for incoming messages; about ~3 kbytes / 10 minutes; that is, ~450kbytes a 24-hour day. If you have a sufficiently (bigger than 20-30M) large data plan, allowing persistent cellular data connection all the time you’re awake won’t really have a very bad effect on your bill (only on your battery life, if you don’t, for example, disable UMTS / HSDPA if your mobile uses them instead of the much more battery-friendly GPRS).

Wow, that was quick! That was exactly what I was looking for, thank you so much :mrgreen: .

I've run some long-time tests in the meantime with MSN messenger: it disconnected after about 18 hours; it used 221k (up)/301k (down) before doing this.

I've just started a long-time test with Agile to see whether it uses less bandwidth.

[Menneisyys]

UPDATE (02/27/2007 11:00 CET): I've finished adding the mChat / gsICQ column (which are really GREAT and free (!) ICQ, Jabber, Mail.ru / ICQ clients, REALLY worth checking out if you're into these services! They are WAY better than PocketICQ, for example!) and have continued adding data usage figures. About 60% of the main article is already ready; I really hope I'll be able to, finally, publish it today or early tomorrow.

[Menneisyys]

Article posted to http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=431691 – make sure you check it out :)

[Paul Martin]

So, is the article "done"? :D

Paul

[Menneisyys]

So, is the article "done"? :D

Paul

Yeah!

Surely I may make some (smaller) corrections / updates in the future, particularly when new versions come out. For the time being, however, it's final.

[jsmcguir]

Menneisyys, i know you can't test it, b/c you're on the other side of the pond, but Cingular finally released the im client (that they had for the nokia i62, smartphones, and all cell phones) for the Cingular 8125/8525 and treo 750. i can't find an external press release, but on a cingular windows mobile phone, go to the cingular home page, mail and messenging, and mobile im. download the cab and use. this guy does charge sms per message, so be careful...