Palringo is a FREE Instant Messaging chat program featuring text, picture and voice. Combine all your buddies from MSN, Google Talk, Yahoo, AIM, ICQ, and more. It works on 500+ mobiles including iPhone, Nokia, Sony Ericsson, and others plus PC & Mac!

The great thing about Palringo is that you can also access Facebook chat AND Apple’s iChat.

Installation:

Before using this app, you must register for an account at Palringo. Once you are registered and have installed the app, you can then navigate through the menu and add multiple chat services.

Features:

Palringo has a very attractive user interface and this makes it easy to chat and navigate through the menu. One of the features of this app is that you are able to send and receive pictures and voice messages. Palringo runs on a low data connection and you can chat between multiple contacts simultaneously. The IM’s also show up real-time and requires no manual refreshing. You can also search for groups and join chat rooms with people that have similar interests. In addition Palringo makes it easy to update your status across a number of services in one try and supports insertion of location into your status so all of your friends can know when your location changes. <- Very cool.

Conclusion: Score 7/10

There are certainly other apps (Nimbuzz,  Fring, IM+Skype, etc)  that allow for multiple chats but since I’ve installed Palringo last week, I’ve noticed that my IM usage on my phone has gone up and I am more frequently chatting on my phone. The app runs smoothly and I’ve had no battery problems with it.

My only concern with this app is that you need to give them your IM account passwords and your account info is stored on their servers. I know this is a sensitive subject for some people out there but to me being able to access all my chat platforms from one centralized UI, makes it all worth it.