Real SMS for iPod Touch app for iPhone and iPad

Send and receive standard SMS messages with your iPod Touch to any kind of mobile phone, from anywhere with a wifi connection. iPhone users can also send via 3G. This app requires an account with an SMS gateway, see below

The recipient does not need a smartphone or any kind of software, and there is no need to know the name of their carrier.

You receive SMS responses via email - immediately, if you subscribe to a push-email service such as MobileMe, Gmail or Yahoo. You can also optionally choose to receive replies on your phone, if you have one.

Enter the recipients phone number or select it from your Contact List. Type your message and press Send. It cant get easier than that!

The receiver gets a normal SMS message, with a telephone number to reply. When she replies, the message is sent to the email account you specify on signup, or your phone.

If you normally use a webmail service with Safari, you might find it more convenient to set up a separate email account just for SMS messages, and then configure Apple Mail to access it via POP or IMAP.

Apple Mail can be configured to check for new mail a maximum of once every 15 minutes. Because a reply can arrive any time, the average wait for an SMS response is therefore 7.5 minutes.

If thats not fast enough for you, subscribe to a push email service and you will get an alert immediately the SMS arrives.

For even greater convenience, if you need to respond you can do so directly from your email application, no need to restart Real SMS.

At this time Real SMS only supports accounts with smsglobal.com.

An SMSGlobal account has no setup or monthly fees, you pay only for credits which do not expire if unused. You also get 25 free credits on signup, which is about the value of this app, so what have you got to lose?

The SMSGlobal website is not optimised for small devices, so you might find it easier to use a computer. You will also need to specify a friend or relatives mobile phone number to receive your account validation code, if you dont have a phone of your own.

Your 25 free SMS are available as soon as you validate, so you can start sending right away. You might want to sign your first few texts, especially if you dont have a phone, as your recipients wont recognise the number they come from!

For more detailed information or support, see the website.