Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
63,278
30,339



133437-aim.png


tclary spotted the AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) client on the App Store during the Guided Tour posted today.

The AIM client will provide iChat compatible instant messaging for the iPhone and iPod Touch. AOL first demoed the app during the original iPhone SDK launch event, but have made no further announcements since that time.

Article Link
 

elppa

macrumors 68040
Nov 26, 2003
3,233
151
How will this work if the APNS (Apple Push Notification Service) isn't live yet?

Also in the same video I noticed that the keynote and word files were zipped?

Does the current iPhone software have in built support .zip files like OS X or is this also something new?
 

SkippyThorson

macrumors 68000
Jul 22, 2007
1,662
917
Utica, NY
If this counts towards the 200 per month texting, then I won't even care about it. :(

If it's free, aka unlimited AIM, then it will round out my top 3 first downloads including eBay and the iTunes Remote. :)
 

caliguy

macrumors 6502
Jun 12, 2005
331
1,029
If this counts towards the 200 per month texting, then I won't even care about it. :(

If it's free, aka unlimited AIM, then it will round out my top 3 first downloads including eBay and the iTunes Remote. :)

I'm almost sure that it wouldn't be counted as text messaging. It's just packets of internet data being transferred.
 

cloudnine

macrumors 6502a
Jul 3, 2006
532
0
San Francisco, CA
I'm almost sure that it wouldn't be counted as text messaging. It's just packets of internet data being transferred.

Yeah, you're probably right... I think the person who was concerned about it being charged as a text message must have had a Moto RAZR (or something similar), where the provider basically had a version of AIM installed on it which treated IM messages as text messages. I had that on Tmobile and almost died when I got my first cell phone bill... Ugh. That version of AIM is basically just a different GUI for the text message application.

Death on a stick.
 

Hooka

macrumors regular
Dec 14, 2007
245
0
Fort Lauderdale, FL
why would any of you think it would cost anything to send and receive a AIM message? I don't think AIM is going to start charging just Iphone users. lol
 

B1gMac

macrumors regular
Jun 2, 2008
150
0
If it's available for the iPod touch, then obviously its not a text message...
 

dacreativeguy

macrumors 68020
Jan 27, 2007
2,032
223
Yeah, you're probably right... I think the person who was concerned about it being charged as a text message must have had a Moto RAZR (or something similar), where the provider basically had a version of AIM installed on it which treated IM messages as text messages. I had that on Tmobile and almost died when I got my first cell phone bill... Ugh. That version of AIM is basically just a different GUI for the text message application.

Death on a stick.

There also used to be a popular IM app on the Treo that would use SMS to alert you of new chat messages when you were outside of the chat app. You could disable that feature, fortunately.

It will be interesting to see how AOL works with the 'no background app' restriction of the SDK. While just having a native IM app will be better than the current web site solutions, that will still pale in comparison to having a true IM client that keeps you available and lets you receive IMs even if you aren't currently in that app or using the iphone at all.
 

Yvan256

macrumors 603
Jul 5, 2004
5,080
991
Canada
Too bad that almost nobody outside the USA uses AIM... Practically everyone I know uses MSN and/or ICQ. And even my ICQ list keeps getting smaller since people are switching to MSN (and I wish I knew why). :confused:

We got a standard for FTP, for email and for the Web, why can't everyone agree on an IM standard that also does audio and video?
 

Yvan256

macrumors 603
Jul 5, 2004
5,080
991
Canada
There also used to be a popular IM app on the Treo that would use SMS to alert you of new chat messages when you were outside of the chat app. You could disable that feature, fortunately.

It will be interesting to see how AOL works with the 'no background app' restriction of the SDK. While just having a native IM app will be better than the current web site solutions, that will still pale in comparison to having a true IM client that keeps you available and lets you receive IMs even if you aren't currently in that app or using the iphone at all.

If you had watched the WWDC keynote you'd know that a really good work-around solution is in place. IMs would be useless if you had to be in the app to use it (receive messages, etc).

Good thing is, it's free! That, along with the eBay app and others will make paying 10$ for my iPod touch upgrade worth it.
 

bigmc6000

macrumors 6502a
May 23, 2006
767
0
Oh Adium where are you??? :) (Maybe they'll call it iAdium or something goofy?)

I can't stand to have to have multiple IM clients - it's just annoying...
 

five04

macrumors member
Dec 11, 2003
77
4
Charlotte, North Carolina
Too bad that almost nobody outside the USA uses AIM... Practically everyone I know uses MSN and/or ICQ. And even my ICQ list keeps getting smaller since people are switching to MSN (and I wish I knew why). :confused:

We got a standard for FTP, for email and for the Web, why can't everyone agree on an IM standard that also does audio and video?

I agree. MSN is junk and the fact that people can change their display name is really annoying. Luckily, being in the US, I don't know anyone who actually uses MSN so it all works out.
 

aerospace

macrumors 6502a
Jun 26, 2007
661
0
anyone seen the agile software im app?

I read on yahoo the iphone version of their chat app includes video.

...I'd post a link but theres no copy paste on my iphone!
 

caliguy

macrumors 6502
Jun 12, 2005
331
1,029
Yeah, you're probably right... I think the person who was concerned about it being charged as a text message must have had a Moto RAZR (or something similar), where the provider basically had a version of AIM installed on it which treated IM messages as text messages. I had that on Tmobile and almost died when I got my first cell phone bill... Ugh. That version of AIM is basically just a different GUI for the text message application.

Death on a stick.

Yep exactly.

Unless AT&T contacts AOL and tells 'em they want more money and makes them change the app. I wouldn't be surprised a bit. Twenty cents for extra texts instead of 10 - Just for the iPhone. Those guys make me sick.
 

freeny

macrumors 68020
Sep 27, 2005
2,064
60
Location: Location:
The AIM will most likely be only usable via wifi...

MR should probably gear up and create a section devoted exclusively to iPhone apps. There will be a lot of chatter I assure you ;)

With the large amount of apps that will be available over time, it is almost certain that there will be hundreds of "Official whatever app" threads that will spawn...
 

JD92

macrumors 6502a
Apr 14, 2005
934
31
Perhaps Google will bring out a Google Talk client for iPhone. Then perhaps if MSN, Yahoo and AIM standardized on XMPP/Jabber, as Google have done, everyone could just download the Google Talk client and would be able to chat to everyone, no matter what network they are on.

I know, I know, unlikely, but one can dream :(
 

Diversion

macrumors 6502a
Oct 5, 2007
773
142
Jacksonville, Florida
Am I the only one really excited about this?

If the AIM client on the iPhone is done as well as the AIM client on the Sidekick, then I can finally say the Sidekick doesn't offer anything better over the iPhone except for a fantastic keyboard.

Sidekick still has the most comfy, fully functional physical keyboard i've ever used on a phone. Aside from that, the messenger clients on the Sidekick are bar-none, the best.

Hopefully the AIM client for the iPhone is as great.. and works when the phone is "off" without disconnecting.

Jay
 

cloudnine

macrumors 6502a
Jul 3, 2006
532
0
San Francisco, CA
It will be interesting to see how AOL works with the 'no background app' restriction of the SDK. While just having a native IM app will be better than the current web site solutions, that will still pale in comparison to having a true IM client that keeps you available and lets you receive IMs even if you aren't currently in that app or using the iphone at all.

Didn't El Jobso address that at the WWDC? Wouldn't applications that "required" running in the background be able to utilize Push technology, instead? So that instead of constantly checking for new messages and destroying battery life, messages would be "pushed" to the phone instead?

I could be phrasing it wrong, but I think this was Jobs' solution to applications wanting to run in the background...
 

cloudnine

macrumors 6502a
Jul 3, 2006
532
0
San Francisco, CA
Yep exactly.

Unless AT&T contacts AOL and tells 'em they want more money and makes them change the app. I wouldn't be surprised a bit. Twenty cents for extra texts instead of 10 - Just for the iPhone. Those guys make me sick.

Yeah, totally... as much as I would like to be optimistic, it's not beyond AT&T and AOL to create an application for the iPhone that would somehow charge you for its usage... either treat the instant messages like text messages, or even have a separate "instant message plan"... hah.

I'm going to stay hopeful, though, and cross my fingers that it's not only a free download, but free to use, as well...
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.