Sending free text from iPhone

Photo from Impact Lab

The data plans that come with the iPhone don’t include text messaging.  You have to either add a messaging plan or pay per text.  After voice and data plan monthly charges, nobody needs another.  So I compiled a couple of ways you can send texts messages for free from your iPhone.  Some also apply to other smartphones.Remember that the recipient may incur charges for the messages you send.

1.  AOL Instant Messenger (AIM)

Just like your computer-based AIM, the AIM iPhone app can also send text messages to phones.  Access to AIM on the iPhone is included in the data plan and does not count as a text message.  Recipients of your messages can reply directly to your message and you will receive the replies via AIM. Click here for instructions at Wired: How-To Wiki.

Read on to see more ways to send text message for free from you iPhone.

2.  Email

Using your email, you can email a text to your friends using their phone’s unique email address (usually using the phone number).  However, you will have to know your friends’ cellphone service provider to know the email address.  Recipients of your messages can reply directly to your message and you will receive the replies via email.Below are the email addresses of the popular providers in NY.  Click here for a more complete list at Note Page.

NOTE: Number is the 10-digit cellphone number.
*Email address for picture messages (MMS).

Teleflip, a company that allows you to use email extension “@teleflip.com” to send email to any phone number without knowing the cellphone service provider, is no longer available as of September 2008.

Below are some links that can help you figure out which cellphone service provider your friend uses:
AT&T
Verizon

3.  Websites (browser)

There are plenty of websites that allow you to send text messages for free.  Joopz is one of them.  However, unlike other websites, you have to create an account at Joopz before you send text messages.  Replies to your messages are sent to your Joopz account which you can access through your browser.  But if SMS forwarding is activated, Joopz forwards your text messages to your cellphone.  Free account at Joopz allows you to send up to 50 outgoing messages per month.

Try to be cautious using websites to send your text.  It is possible that they don’t have a strict privacy policy in place which may result to your information being sold.

I use the email option to send free texts.  I think it is the safer option (than websites) that does not require me to log in each time to retrieve my messages (unlike AIM).

1. I suggest setting up a “push” email account on your iPhone such as Yahoo! Mail, Microsoft Exchange and MobileMe, and set this account as default.  When new information such as new email on push accounts is available, they are delivered automatically to the iPhone.
2. Under Settings > Push New Data, switch Push on.  Under Settings > Push New Data > Advanced, make sure your email is set to Push.  This way, when somebody replies to your text message sent via the email, you will be automatically notified when the reply is received.
3. Add the cellphone email addresses to the appropriate contacts.  Friends that I always text are pretty close to me, so I just call them and ask them their cellphone service provider so I can figure out the cellphone email address.