Question about IM & Texting

I have an LG Env Touch with an Unlimited Texting Family Plan... I was wondering if the "Mobile IM" app included in the Env Touch will charge me extra for using it... Does that count as Data usage?

Thanks again,

Shaku

Accepted answers

SuzyQ

Any messages sent or received using the Mobile IM are counted as TEXT messages, not data. If you have unlimited, then no worries! My daughter uses Mobile IM to text with friends in the UK and avoid international texting charges...works well!

All comments

lewisr13

SuzyQ

Thorxes

I had the same original question and I've spoken with 2 store reps and 1 tech support rep.

ALL of them have said that the IM apps that come with the phone use DATA, not texts.

These are the 3 that are under the "IM" app that comes standard with my Samsung Stratosphere.

AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) - Data usage
Yahoo! Messenger - Data usage
Windows Live Messenger - Data usage

This turned out to be how the salesperson got me to get a smartphone. I needed to increase my texting allowance...which was going to cost me $10 to upgrade. He said if the people that I text the most also have smart phones, instead of texting, we could start using the IM apps mentioned above, and use only data instead of the texts.

lewisr13

Thorxes wrote:
ALL of them have said that the IM apps that come with the phone use DATA, not texts.

Maybe because you have a smart phone. If you have a basic phone it is counted as texts not data.

Thorxes

That could definitely be the case. But the second time I spoke to someone in the store…I made a phone call to them. And I directly asked if using the IM apps on their phones used data or text. They said Data, and never asked what kind of phone I was using….maybe they assumed I was using a smart phone since I mentioned the use of apps?