Trillian for iPhone Finally Released

[Paul Daniel Ash]

After a long wait in Apple-approval limbo, Trillian for iPhone is now available for purchase on the App Store. The makers of the slick multiservice IM client waited three months, with no word up or down from Apple, before the okay came through yesterday.

While chat windows somewhat evoke the look and feel of Messages, the functionality far outstrips what comes in Apple's standard SMS client. The iPhone version, like the popular desktop program, allows for multiple IM connections to be managed and used in a single app. Unlike the desktop version, though, all connections are handled through Trillian's Astra network. Trillian for iPhone is always connected to the Astra server, which allows instant sync between different clients running on different platforms. If you change your avatar or display name on your iPhone, for example, the change is immediately propagated to your Windows client as well as your online Astra Profile. Adding a contact on the iPhone app, also adds a contact on the Mac program, conveniently allowing a consistent way to manage settings.

Back in August, around the time of the notorious Google Voice non-rejection rejection, Cerulean submitted the Trillian for iPhone app to Apple. The developers noted that they hadn't gotten any rejection or objection from Apple in all that time.

Despite sending a steady stream of emails to Apple requesting status updates, we continue to receive generic form letters in response -- frustrating, to say the least.

Trillian's proprietary “Octopus” technology allows Trillian for iPhone sessions to be stored server-side, so that when you lose connection due to gaps in 3G or WiFi servce, messages and chats can be buffered on the network for delivery later on. You can even quit the app, and still find all your chat windows and messages when you log back in. Trillian for iPhone can be configured to automatically set your status to away when the application closes down.

The app has a number of nice features that allow for smoother integration of multiple accounts. With tabbed chats, you can switch from one account to the other, while the Active Chats screen shows all your currently open chats at a glance. Trillian also supports push notifications, so you can be informed of new chats and messages via a pop-up dialog. Photos from the camera or Photo Library can be sent to contacts, and the app can receive images from the desktop client.

The app is available for $4.99 on the App Store. The price is for existing Trillian Pro users as well as new customers, the company notes, because all of the new versions - iPhone, desktop, and Web ports - utilize the Astra service, which makes use of Cerulean servers and backhaul.

image via Trillian

[punkstar31]

Should I change Beejive for this?

[zinjen]

Should I change Beejive for this?

No questions ask, do it now.

[n00neimp0rtant]

NO LANDSCAPE KEYBOARD! What were they thinking??

[SourAppleFan]

I LOVEd TRILLIAN!! too bad i no longer have internet on my iPhone for TMo :-(
- and who IMs anymore?! it's all about TXTing and FB chat... seriously

[atomb]

I gave it a try today and it just doesn't come close to Beejive. It will keep you logged in for a max of 24 hours as opposed to Beejive that will do 7 days. Trillian doesn't have facebook chat support. Maybe after they do some work on it it may be worth it but it just isn't as good right now.

[Amraam]

Is it better than IM+?

[Hyperextension]

Is it better than IM+?

I have heard that Beejive is way better.

I am currently using Beejive, but used IM+ for a long while. Decided to change up and I have found Beejive to be MUCH superior to IM+.

By the looks of it, Beejive is still the one to use.

[hondakorn]

I gave it a try today and it just doesn't come close to Beejive. It will keep you logged in for a max of 24 hours as opposed to Beejive that will do 7 days. Trillian doesn't have facebook chat support. Maybe after they do some work on it it may be worth it but it just isn't as good right now.

i couldnt find that setting for the life of me.......is it auto or have to manually set the login time???

[VenomousSVT]

terrible app.. trillian needs to have all sorts of bug patches.. you HAVE to get it right the first time when setting up your profile or you wont be able to delete the profile and will be stuck with 2 on the main screen. You have to jump through bells and whistles to set up more accounts once you hit the go button so set them all up at the very beginning ro spend 30 minutes trying to figure out how to set them back up.. can not set the "group" for my newly added contacts. it always reset to default once i hit the back button...

very very buggy and i USED to be a big trillian fan!

[Ajugal]

Really? I didn't have any problems loading it, remembered my existing account info and it loaded up right away. So far no problems with it on my end. But it needs landscaping. Sending the pics is pretty quick and the ability to cancel it if you are sending a pic to the wrong person :-p

[knguyen]

Yea Beejive is much better, though it's more expensive. And it's true, no one really IM anymore. Facebook is a universal thing now and their app is free.

[LGgeek]

I LOVEd TRILLIAN!! too bad i no longer have internet on my iPhone for TMo :-(
- and who IMs anymore?! it's all about TXTing and FB chat... seriously

with basic data plan IM doesn't cost anything. texting my be in vogue but costs.

[jahkas]

Stick with beejive.... u have to sign into trillian in order to sign into to yahoo, msn.etc.

[Raptors]

Beejive is still number one,
im+ is still number 2

Not impressed, bought it, deleted it couple hours later.

[DirtyDan]

I'll stick with Nimbuzz. Manages my Twitter, Facebook, and also lets me chat simultaneously using Facebook Chat, AIM, MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk, and much more!

Oh, and did I mention it's got push notification and landscape keyboard for all messaging?

Sounds like a no-brainer to me, Nimbuzz > *

[bcastro]

I will stick with BeeJiveIM

[robbpell]

ppl most apps have bugs when first released. now that its actually in the appstore im sure they will take the feedback and update accordingly.

[StealthBravo]

Sticking with Beejive

[WaLLy3K]

terrible app.. trillian needs to have all sorts of bug patches.. you HAVE to get it right the first time when setting up your profile or you wont be able to delete the profile and will be stuck with 2 on the main screen.

Swipe across and it brings up the delete button.

There's a lot of things that Trillian does right - mostly with its backend that's a lot more efficient, but the Beejive client is far nicer.