Using AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) to Chat with any Cell Phone User!
Many people don’t know about a neat little feature of AOL Instant Messenger that enables you to send a text message to virtually any cell phone. This feature is so instant that it’s virtually like chatting on-line, and no special software is required on the user’s cell phone.
Using your AOL instant messenger account, you can send a text message to any cell phone that can accept text messages, using your AIM software (or any IM software where you have configured your AOL Instant Messenger account, such as Trillian, Gaim, etc.)
To send an IM to a cell phone:
- On the AOL® search bar, click IM.
- In To, type a Plus sign (+), the country code, and the full ten-digit cell phone number.
-For example: +13335551212 - If you are sending a message to a cell phone outside the U.S., include the country code.
- Type your message in the large text entry box, and then click Send.
I personally use Trillian as my IM client, and in Trillian you can either right-click on the ‘circle’ icon that represents your AOL connection, and select “Send a Message”, or just add a new AIM contact and enter the username as +1 and the cell phone number (i.e. +13335551212)
(for International cell phone numbers, you need to enter the country code as well)
Depending on the cell phone carrier, the cell phone user can even reply to the message, and you will receive their reply in your IM client!
I tested this with AT&T Wireless (on a Blackberry) and Verizon Wireless (on a Treo 700w) and in both cases I was able to reply from my phone and the message was received on the computer (in Trillian or AOL Instant Messenger) in the same way that a reply would come from an IM chat client, and just about as instant!
Here’s a tip: if the cell phone user saves the text message you sent them, they can just reply to that message any time in the future to automatically IM you!
Before you play around with this too much just make sure that you have unlimited text messaging on your phone, as each message you send or reply to is counted as a regular text message by your cell phone carrier.
