Latest IM Versions
February 22, 2009 by Jeff Hester
Filed under Instant Messaging
This is a list of the latest instant messaging, voice over IP (VoIP) and chat programs, with links to the official sites where you can download them. Unless noted otherwise, all of these programs are free.
We make every effort to keep this listing up-to-date, but before you complain that your favorite IM program isn’t listed, let me remind you of two things. First, this is not an exhaustive list of every IM program under the sun — just the ones that are most significant. And secondly, if you would like to see something added, or have an update to report, please, leave a comment. – The BigBlue Crew
The Main Players
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AIM/AOL Messenger Overview | AIM Forum |
6.9.13.4 | 28 Apr 2009 |
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Digsby Overview | Digsby Forum |
Build 62 | 14 Aug 2009 |
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Google Talk Overview | Google Talk Forum |
1.0.0.104 | 1 Jan 2007 |
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ICQ Overview | ICQ Forum |
6.5.1042 | 04 Mar 2009 |
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Skype Overview | Skype Forum |
4.0.0.226 | 22 Apr 2009 |
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Trillian Overview | Trillian Forum |
4.0 Build 104 | 21 Apr 2009 |
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Windows Live Messenger Overview | Windows Live Messenger Forum |
2009 Build 14.0.8064.206 | 14 Feb 2009 |
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Yahoo! Messenger Overview | Yahoo! Messenger Forum |
9.0.0.2152 | 24 Mar 2009 |
The Contenders
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Adium – Mac | 1.3.4b1 | 24 Apr 2009 |
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Miranda – PC | 0.7.19 (beta) | 18 Apr 2009 |
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QQ 2009 – PC | 1.23.375.0 | |
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Instan-T - PC Overview |
5.0 | 17 Dec 2008 |
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iChat – Mac | 4.0.0.206 | 29 Jan 2009 |
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PaltalkScene – PC | 9.6 | 28 Jan 2009 |
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Gizmo5 – PC, Mac, Linux, Nokia Tablet | 4.0.5.389 | 07 Mar 2009 |
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Pidgin – PC, Linux Overview | Pidgin Forum |
2.5.5 | 03 Mar 2009 |
The Mobile Crowd
Mobile messaging lets you IM from anywhere. These programs usually have limited features compared to their desktop siblings. Not all programs support all mobile operating systems.
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AIM iPhone, Windows Mobile, G1, Symbian |
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BeeJive IM iPhone |
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IM+ iPhone |
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Fring iPhone |
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Truphone iPhone |
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QQ iPhone |
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Nimbuzz iPhone |
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Palringo iPhone |
A great resource for the latest versions of software in all categories is FileHippo.com. And if you need to find an older version of one of these programs, check out OldVersion.com
To learn which IM lets you communicate with each IM network, check out our IM operability matrix.
This list is still being developed. Your comments and feedback are welcome!
Updated August 18, 2009.
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This list is a start, but what about all the great Mac clients? These are all Windows versions! And what about the alternative clients like Adium, Pidgin and Miranda? Hmmmm??
Thanks for the feedback, Scott. Actually, you caught us in sort of a “pre-re-launch test period” where some of our content is still being updated. Tentative plans are to complete the updates this week and go live on March 1st (our 8th anniversary!).
We will definitely be including all the IM programs you mentioned, plus more. We will probably categorize by PC, Linux, Mac, and mobile devices.
But keep the feedback coming!
This is a wonderful inclusion, because we know whether we are using the latest IM clients or not. Furthermore, listing the release date is a wonderful plus. Thanks, Jeff!
Finally! This has got to be one long awaited feature I wanted to see on the forums for a while now. Good stuff!
Looking good!
Wouldn’t mind seeing Paltalk on the list. They have a browser only version called Paltalk Express for PC, Max and Linux. However, the downloadable Paltalk Scene is still only PC.
Great suggestion, Doris. I’ve added Paltalk. I’ll create a separate reference page for the web-based IM and chat.
there is another that I can think of, these are the current builds they are on and I know
Trillian 3 – build : 3.1.12.0
Trillian 4 ( AKA )Astra – Beta Build 99
and i know at 1 point in time they we’re making a Mac Version but to tell you the truth i have no idead what version they are on for it since i dont use it
Thanks Kevin. We’ve got Trillian 3 listed already, but I’ll add Astra to the list.
In mobile all this messengers are bad… shmessenger is the number one
It must be almost impossible to fully maintain a list like this!?
I checked (via http://www.filehippo.com File Update) the 5 progs I use, and 3 of them need updating here.
ICQ 6.5.1042 – 2009/3/4
Skype 4.0.0.215 – 2009/3/11
Gizmo Project 4.0.5.389 – 2009/3/7
(Dates shown in international format – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_8601 )
@Costi – I had never heard of shMessenger before. Are you one of the developers?
@Eagle_Kiwi – It’s hard, but not impossible, thanks to people like you who leave comments! That Filehippo site is a great resource for finding version numbers.
Hi Jeff:
Just released JBuddy Messenger v3.0 today. Runs on mac osx, so, vista, Linux, Solaris, etc. May be the only/first(?) non-Microsoft client supporting Office Communications Server.
Skype did launch 4.1 – you might want to update…
So many IM, for you what is a good Messenger?
because I use skype and it really good to its core and functionality easy to use and userfriendly…
This is by far the best and most comprehensive list of IM clients i have seen so far.
I love MSN, but why is there so many spam messages from russian brides?