chatting

Make a T-Mobile call on your new iPhone

T-Mobile USA, despite being the only national wireless carrier without the iPhone, has found a way to get on Apple's smash-hit smartphone.

The carrier today launched a mobile version of its Bobsled Internet-based calling app. The app will work on any iOS device, from the iPhone to the iPad, as well as Android smartphones and tablets.

T-Mobile is attempting to branch out of its core wireless service and dip its toes into adjacent growth areas such as Web-based phone and messaging services. The mobile app represents an expansion of its Bobsled initiative, which allows users to log in with their Facebook credentials and make phone calls, leave voicemails, and send messages for free. … Read more

Crave 58: Replace your face (podcast)

This week, Donald and Eric discuss two street-legal TRON-inspired lightcycles at opposite ends of the price spectrum. Plus, we creep out on a way to perform real-time video face substitution, and the implications it will have on the future of video chat and our children. In geek news, Eric nominates an actor for Zombie of the Year and sounds off on Gears of War 3.

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Apple's iMessage protocol headed to iChat?

Following in the footsteps of Apple's FaceTime video chat, Apple's iMessage could be the next feature to make the jump from iOS to Apple's Mac OS X.

MacRumors today points to a code string within OS X Lion's iChat software noting when messages are both delivered and read, receipts that are currently available as part of its upcoming iMessage service. The outlet notes that these particular code strings haven't appeared in previous versions of the iChat software, suggesting support for the protocol will be there when iMessage officially launches this fall.

Apple introduced iMessage as … Read more

Bye-bye, multiple chat clients

One of the most popular and customizable third-party clients in the multiservice chat category for Mac continues to impress. It supports multiple services, including AIM, Yahoo, MSN, Facebook, Windows Live, and Google Chat. Part of what made the original Adium so attractive was the multitude of IM service options, and that still forms the core appeal of this client. The interface is smooth and lean, fitting in well with the Mac OS. The client supports tabbed browsing, encrypted messaging, and you can transfer files to your buddies, though it can be hit or miss depending on what service you're … Read more

Galaxy Tab delayed Down Under

Apple is heavily rumored to be working on an HDTV with TV subscriptions, Facebook Deals is dead, and Samsung postpones releasing the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia due to patent litigation.

Links from Monday's episode of Loaded:

Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 delayed in Australia Samsung ChatON message service GoogleTV in Europe next year Apple to enter TV market Facebook Deals dead Sonnet's Thunderbolt ExpressCard/34 adapater Subscribe: iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (320x180) | iTunes (HD) | RSS (MP3) | RSS (320x180) | RSS HD

Samsung unveiling its own instant messaging tool

Samsung is jumping into the instant messaging market with a new IM tool destined for a variety of feature phones and smartphones.

The Korean mobile phone maker's new and free ChatOn IM client is designed to be cross-platform, allowing users of a wide range of phones to be able to chat with family, friends, and colleagues. The service will be preinstalled on Samsung's feature phones as well as smartphones running both Android and the company's own Bada mobile OS, according to Reuters.

But it will also be available as a free download for other mobile platforms, including … Read more

The 404 891: Where we are total losers (podcast)

Writer Caprice Crane joins us in the studio today to tell us what it's like writing for shows like "90210" (2.0) and "Melrose Place." She also gets life-changing news halfway into today's preshow, so tune into Monday's show to find out how to win a copy of her book, "Little Luck."

Caprice also has a new Web site for self-deprecating stories called I'm A Total Loser, and she sticks around in the second half to give us her take on stories about social networking leading to drug abuse, a peer-to-peer alarm clock that smells like Chatroulette, and how social networking is blowing the cover of covert police officers.

The 404 Digest for Episode 891

Huffington Post named Caprice Crane the top 50 funniest on Twitter. I'm a Total Loser Newsflash: Social networking leads to drug abuse. Social media could render covert policing "impossible." National Lampoon names Caprice Crane " Twitter Queen." Follow Caprice Crane on Twitter.

Episode 891 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Lock in a lower AT&T text rate before the price hike

Are you an AT&T phone user with a text plan? On August 21, AT&T will replace its lower-tiered text plans with a $20-per-month unlimited plan. The family rate of $30 unlimited texting (for five devices) will still be an option, but tiered pricing of $10 for 1,000 texts won't be. If you already have a plan that suits your needs, you won't need to make any changes, but if you have one of the soon-defunct lower-tier plans, this is the perfect time to switch.… Read more

TeamSpeak 3 app now available for iOS devices

TeamSpeak today unveiled an official app for iOS devices ($4.99) that delivers nearly the same functionality as the popular desktop client.

Utilized by millions of gamers around the world, TeamSpeak is a way for small or large groups of people to communicate without interruption. Long ago, when I played World of Warcraft, our guild's TS3 server would have 25 people on it as we worked together in a raid to defeat Illidan Stormrage. It was the perfect way for our guild to communicate during the complicated confrontation and it wouldn't be uncommon for all us to be on the server for hours as we trekked our way through the Black Temple.

While my MMORPG days are long gone, I still hop on TeamSpeak from time to time to catch up with my gaming buddies. After downloading TeamSpeak for iPhone, I logged in to my usual server and tested out the app, which supports multi-server connectivity. Incoming sound quality is comparable to the desktop experience, while my voice sounded crisp and clear to my friends. So far, so good.… Read more

Chat away

Facebook's chat feature is a great way to have instant contact with your friends, but it's not always practical to stay logged in to the site all day long (ahem, such as while you're at work). Chit Chat for Facebook acts just like Facebook's own chat feature, but it lets you chat without using your Web browser.

The program's user interface is pretty self-explanatory. Once you sign in using your Facebook username and password, all of your friends who are available to chat appear as "online." Double clicking on a specific person introduces … Read more