Palringo Launches BlackBerry Client; Text, Voice and Image IM
After what has been quite a long wait for many eager BlackBerry users, Palringo has finally made its BlackBerry IM client available to the public. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Palringo’s IM client, it’s definitely time to remedy that. Already fairly popular on Symbian and Windows Mobile devices, Palringo provides text, voice and image IM services - for free. Beyond its own IM service it also supports just about every popular IM platform like Google Talk, AIM, MSN Yahoo and more. Let’s break it down by service:
- Text IM: Standard, run-of-the-mill instant messaging.
- Voice IM: More commonly known as Push to Talk (PTT), users can instantly exchange voice messages in near real-time. Think of it as a free walkie talkie on your mobile. PTT is a service that has been very limited in consumer acceptance due to high prices, handset compatibility issues and carrier limitations. Enter Palringo. Now that a solid java client is available, for free, PTT couldn’t be more accessible. Also of note, Palringo supports voice messaging to third-party IM clients (GTalk, AIM, etc) as well. While Palringo -> Palringo voice messages will play automatically on the recipient’s device, Palringo -> ‘Other’ messages will be delivered as links that the recipient can click on to play the audio file hosted on Palringo’s servers.
- Image IM: Exactly what it sounds like. Click the picture button and Palringo will activate the handset’s camera. Snap a picture, hit send and the image will display right in the Palringo client on the recipient’s handset. Users can also send images to third-party IM services (GTalk, AIM, etc). Just like voice IM, your buddy will receive a link that will allow him / her to view and even save the image hosted on Palringo’s servers.
Palringo also includes some other nice features such as group chat with image and voice support; meaning you can send one text, voice or image IM that will be received simultaneously by any number of users in a group. To download the app on your BlackBerry, just visit palringo.mobi from your mobile browser or hit the read link to visit Palringo’s site and check out other download options.
UPDATE: Sorry guys, we forgot to mention that for the time being you’ll need a Pearl, Curve or 8800 series to play.
[Via Press Release]
Tags: BlackBerry, IM, Instant Messaging, Palringo, PTT, RIM
On Jun 19, 2008 @ 11:04 am, Abid Said:
I haven’t tried this yet, but does anyone know if its better/worse than Blackberry Jivetalk?
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 11:10 am, vaillaw Said:
I have a blackberry 8300. I went to palringo.mobi and got the message “Unfortunately we can’t recognize your device or it isn’t on our supported list at the moment.”
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 11:24 am, Track40 Said:
No workie for my either… Blackberry 8700.
Damn.
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 11:30 am, GlennP Said:
i keep getting a “connection lost” message when i try to sign in. anyone know how to fix this?
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 11:31 am, Amir Saad Said:
Works on my Pearl very well and yes..Push to talk works as well.
I tried it with a Moto Q9 which uses windows mobile 5 and I really can’t complain…it does what it should do.
Text…isn’t that impressive, I’ve seen yahoo messenger much more impressive and Mig33 but it’s ok.
Photos didn’t work, it has to be 64Kb or less and I still didn’t work on how that is transfered since it activates your camera to take shots once you click on the option itself but doesn’t do anything else afterwards…
Overall…you have to have a data plan to make it work and for international reasons…two thumbs up.
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 12:00 pm, Jerry C Said:
I was super excited about! I recieved the same error:
“Unfortunately we can’t recognize your device or it isn’t on our supported list at the moment.”
Whats the deal?!
-8700g
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 12:05 pm, Jerry C Said:
-Answering my own question:
I found in their forums that they only support
8100, 8300, 8800 series devices.
poopcicles!
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 6:24 pm, vaillaw Said:
I have a 8300 and I got the error message.
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On Jun 19, 2008 @ 9:02 pm, Dhanu Said:
It’s a bugfest. Can’t wait till they fix it.
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 4:40 am, smis Said:
Make sure you are using a Blackberry as your emulator not netscape, It can make a difference
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 10:14 am, Chris Said:
Yeah don’t install this crap. The picture function simply doesn’t work. I didn’t see a way to hide offline contacts. Oh and my phone just popped up an hourglass for about 3 minutes at a time everytime I came back from standyby while the program was running. Just get JiveTalk instead.
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 1:29 pm, darknight247 Said:
Wow, was super excited to install this but after install kept telling me that the accounts I was entering were not able to log in. Fail.
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 3:28 pm, Amir Saad Said:
I got it to work….all of it. All features are working very well. The faster your phone the more reliable it gets…
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 4:03 pm, luc-mobile Said:
It doesn’t work on pure BIS-B. You’ll need a direct TCP/APN connection.
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 4:09 pm, Mandeep Said:
Amir, How did you get the picture function to work? My blackberry 8310 freezes after the picture is taken.
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On Jun 20, 2008 @ 4:51 pm, vaillaw Said:
Over my head but thanks!!!!
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