One of the most frequently voiced complaints about the iPhone since its introduction last year has been a lack of instant messaging support. There are plenty of workarounds, to be sure, but they ranged from potentially expensive (like using the iPhone's SMS system) to slow (web-based applications) to illicit (clients that ran on jailbroken phones).

But along with the launch of the App Store also came the first official native instant-messaging client, AOL's free AIM, as well as a brand new $64,000 question: was it everything that instant messengers in search of a constant connection had been dreaming and hoping for? Life, unfortunately, is constantly full of disappointments. So while the answer is probably not, the client is actually quite good at what it does, despite some noticeable limitations.

Let's get one thing out of the way right up top: AIM on the iPhone is not going to be a replica of your usual desktop chatting experience. With Apple's prohibition on background applications, you can only use AIM when it's in the foreground; at WWDC, Apple announced plans to roll out a push-notification system in September that will allow users to be alerted when messages arrive, even if AIM isn't active.

Launching AIM for the first time will prompt you for login credentials--AIM supports only its eponymous network, though .Mac/MobileMe usernames will work as well. The application does not support logging in under multiple accounts simultaneously and if you want to switch to another account, you'll have to navigate to the iPhone's Settings application and change the information there. That's annoying for those who maintain multiple accounts, but it's also the way Apple asked developers to implement preferences.

In those settings, you also have the option to deactivate AIM's sounds (though the iPhone will still vibrate every time you receive a message unless you turn vibrate off entirely) and decide whether your account should be signed out when you leave the program. If you leave the last setting to "Off," then your account will continue to receive messages when you quit the app, though you won't see them until you launch the program again.

Once you're logged in, you'll have access to your complete AIM Buddy List, including groups. You can view any user's profile by tapping the small blue arrow next to their name, send them a message by tapping on their name, or add them to a list of favorites, just like in the iPhone's Phone application.

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