a few reMarks

I feel within (at most ) the next 5 years we will no longer have cellphone plans where you purchase "minutes". As we move more and more towards IP communications and Web 3.0. Your cellphone will just become a medium of virtualization, a conduit to your data that is accessible from any connected device. Instead data plans will become the norm. In fact examples of this are already here. T-mobile already allows you to have unlimited calls on wifi-enabled phones (very similar to UbiCell from my CES 2008 highlights). Other products such as skype mobile have been around for a while and allow you to "cheat" the number of minutes you use each month.

With this idea in mind I try to use as much data on my cell phone each month to stay connected (partly to justify to myself the added cost of having the data plan). With this in mind i stumbled across this sweet program this morning: Palringo. This program is basically a multi-platform mulit-service IM client on steriods. Supporting AIM, G-Talk, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber, MSN, Gadu-Gadu running on Windows, Linux, Sambian, WM6, Java enabled phones or computers. Palringo allows you to quickly send picture messages, IM's, and voice messages which they call the "walkie-talkie on steroids" feature. Best of all it's FREE! Head over to their website and check it out.