You won't find iChat or any instant messaging on the iPhone. For whatever reason, Apple decided against instant messaging. There is a workaround, though - Meebo.
Meebo is a Web service that lets you use IM via meebo.com. Meebo supports Google Talk, MSN, Yahoo, and AIM. For Mac users, AIM is compatible with iChat. Meebo is free to use, and you have to sign up for an account.
Why would you want to use IM through a Web site? You could use Meebo if you're at a public Internet kiosk that has no chat client installed. Or you can use Meebo on an iPhone via the Safari browser.
Until recently, Meebo lacked an important feature: The ability to send a message by tapping the iPhone's return button. But they've fix that. We gave Meebo a try on our iPhone. Here are the pictures of our experience.
After we signed up for an account and logged in, here's how Meebo looks on our iPhone. Thank goodness for zoom.
To chat, you find the name on your buddy list, and tap on it. A chat windows comes up. You then tap in the message area to type. And this is where it gets tricky. The keyboard takes up most of the screen, moving most of your chat window offscreen.
When you're done typing, hit Go to send the message.
You can't see the dialog when the keyboard is onscreen. When you're done typing the keyboard disappears and then you can zoom out or pan to see the chat window. The annoying thing is that you have to repeat this prcoess over and over: Type, tap go, unzoom/pan. Type, tap Go, unzoom/pan. It can get annoying. (You can't not zoom. Whenever you tap on the text field to type, iPhone zooms in.)
When you're in landscape mode, the keyboard takes up almost the whole screen. There's room only for three lines of the message you're typing.
Meebo for iPhone is in what the company calls "pre-Alpha." Meebo knows its not perfect for the iPhone, but they're working on improvements. Considering that the iPhone isn't even a week old, Meebo has adjusted to the iPhone quickly. It's not the optimal solution, but Meebo works in a pinch. And it's free.
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Links:
[1] http://www.meebo.com
[2] http://www.maclife.com/article/podcast_14_hands_on_with_the_iphone
[3] http://www.maclife.com/article/iphone_rollout_east_coast_notes
[4] http://www.maclife.com/article/iphone_8gb_first_look
[5] http://www.maclife.com/article/iphone_mob_in_full_effect_at_downtown_sf_store_across_u_s
[6] http://www.maclife.com/article/iphones_top_5_best_and_worst_features_according_to_leslie
[7] http://www.maclife.com/article/how_to_remove_the_iphone_sim_card
[8] http://www.maclife.com/article/waiting_for_the_iphone_editors_blog
[9] http://www.maclife.com/article/5_more_iphone_tricks
[10] http://www.maclife.com/article/one_million_iphones_iphone_developer_guidelines_available_and_more
