The paid version is practically the same thing as the free version. The only advantage is a landscape keyboard and no ads. My brother has both versions, and there is no real difference performance-wise. I would suggest Beejive, if you use more than one IM client. The app is a bit pricey at $9.99, but the quality is outstanding. There are many customization options, you can change the status of each individual client that you use, and most importantly you can stay logged in as long as 7 days. And of course it includes push notifications. It might be worth it, for $6.00 more.