...
I found sms.ac, a small, simple, and easy-looking website. I was a bit dubious about giving out my phone number, but I decided to risk it. After about half an hour, during which I registered and activated my account, I was sending text messages. It is that fast to register.
You get 8 ... Read review
A review by reddragonflame87 on sms.ac March 14th, 2005
Author's product rating:
Navigation
Good
Features
Average
Advantages:
Free texting, easy enough to navigate, 8 free texts a day .
Disadvantages:
Some features expensive, very slow loading, TERRIBLE background music !
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Note - I am only reviewing the free stuff on this site. This is because A) When I join a text site I don't join to pay someone loads of cash when I can do that on my phone anyway, and B) Because I haven't explored them yet due to reason A).
During the long summer holidays of 2004, I did what most jobless 16 year olds do.... ran out of credit on my phone. And frankly, I could not be bothered totopup. Now, the rest of my family used Lycos to text people, sending 5(I think) free texts a day. But that wasnt enough. So, armed with a keyboard and Google, I searched for oh, about ten minutes.
I found sms.ac, a small, simple, and easy-looking website. I was a bit dubious about giving out my phone number, but I decided to risk it. After about half an hour, during which I registered and activated my account, I was sending text messages. It is that fast to register.
You get 8 free texts each day, but apparantly in some countries that will end soon, although there is no idea given as to when or where, and this has been advertised for almost a year. You also get 150 free texts when you first sign up (Worth 15 quid!) which can be used in the first 30 days. Free texts do not accumulate, ie. You cannot have 8 one day, then 16 the next day, you have to use them all up in the one day. There are also special things you can do to get more free texts, like complete a profile or upload pics (This seems to have changed now, however...). Also, on some occasions their database appears to mess up, allowing for a huge exploit which I will describe later...
Texts can be roughly 120 characters in length. This is about two thirds of the length of messages from my phone, meaning you cannot say as much as you usually might. However it is generally enough to say what you have to. At the end of texts you send are the words "Send FREE msgs from www.SMS.ac", although whether this is to advertise or show whomever you are texting how cheap you are I am not sure.
There are various mobile services that cannot receive texts for some reason or another. Also, you always have to include the +44 or whatever country code you need to use at the start of the number. However, this is the same on many websites. The texts are sent fast as well, usually instantly although it does on occasions take a few minutes, or even up to an hour. This is only when the site is particulary busy though.
The layout of the site is currently, really rather tragic. It used to be basic blue and white, quick and easy to send from, and fast to navigate. Now, however, it has various pictures and special animations and irritating ringtones as background music. As well as this, the last thing that seems to load is the text service itself, meaning it is slow to send texts, when it used to be fast.
IMPORTANT SECTION WARNING
===MAKE SURE YOU READ THIS=== The biggest problems with this site are the clubs and community. Basically, when you sign up,according to your profile it reccomends you several clubs and basic daily texts. UNCHECK ALL OF THESE! Texts sent to you cost 10p and as the clubs can send out unlimited texts in a day, depending on the number of members, this can drain your credit like a fat kid drains a pack of Milky Stars. You are signed up to about five daily texts if you do not uncheck them, and any amount of clubs.These are so expensive because the daily texts cost ten pence, as do any messages from the clubs.You are messaged whenever someone posts a new message in a club, so if ten people a day write something, thats one pound. Thats more than you save using free texts.
THEREFORE IF YOU ARE SKIMMING, READ THIS SECTION WELL! ===END===
You are able to reccomend your friends to this site, and you even have a guestbook to sign. This is supposedly for people to make friends, although I only ever have people I know sign mine. You are able to delete messages in your guestbook as well, in case anyone says something you don't like.
When the databases mess up, it can be possible to send unlimited texts for free, by signing in and out of your account when you run out of texts. For some reason, this then "refills" your texts up to 8 free once again. In one day I was able to send almost 50 texts - thats a fivers worth of texts for free! The length of time you can do this for varies considerably; it can be a few hours, or a few days, or even weeks and weeks.
All in all, even though it is slow, it is free and considering that 8 texts a day is 80 pence, in a week you would be saving five pounds and sixty pence. Plus, fifteen pounds worth of credit for the first month means there is no reason to not join. Just make sure you do not sign up for clubs, ok?
Advantages: Make new friends, Something to do! Disadvantages: Costs lots, not as good as it sounds!
...so this wouldn’t help!
SMS.AC web page is quite bland looking nothing really stands out when you arrive apart from the SMS.AC logo, which is in four different colours at the top of the page.
You’ll find a gray box at the left hand side of the page, above this is a link, which says ‘Join SMS.ac – Its Free’. So if you’d like to become a member now’s the time to click on this.
Your be asked the following:
*Your Country
*Your City (My city wasn’t ... ...mates.
WRONG….
What SMS.ac forget to state until you notice the tiny writing is that you will only be able to text Free for 30 days AND….
You can only txt people whose mobiles have been registered with the site.
TXT FLIRT
There is an option to SMSFlirt this isn’t something I wanted to go into really. I have a boyfriend I’m quite happy with thank you very much. But just for you guys I had a quick look for those of you who maybe interested in ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Mobile Community, Free Messaging, Cool Site, Pictures of contacts Disadvantages: Can get expensive
...need to pay for each message you recieve. If you can afford it, I would highly recommend it. There is a lot of stuff ont the SMS.ac site that I am yet to fiddle with, but from what I have used, it's pretty dang good (and fun!). ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Navigation
Features
helpful
21.09.2004
Quick review of sms.ac Review ofsms.acby
Kurt81
This site is a complete scam, google and you will see several complains, I signed up for free texts.
I started receiving text on my phone, fake friends requests etc which were charing me 50p everytime i received one and I was getting 5 or more per day. Nothing during signing up warned me of this but it seems whilst signing up for these "free" text you are signed up for a premium account.
This site is an expensive scam, stay away.
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Meet lots of cool peeps, great ringtones, some free SMS Disadvantages: Quite a few pents (similar to what others are charging)
I have been using SMS.ac (www.sms.ac) for quite some time now (over a year?). I have two good friends that I have met from this site, as well as a couple of dates ;)
They have a HUGE community of people in which you can join a particular group with the same interest base. Some clubs are slow, but some are pretty active (some are too active.. so, make sure you figure out what you want before you sign up). I was in about 25 SMS.ac clubs to begin with ... ...money. You can register here:
http://www.sms.ac/Registration/
There are some similar sites that are also very good in regards to these services (about the same price). As far as lots and lots of peeps go.. SMS.ac seems to have the most.
Cheers,
** Carter J ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Maybe their free text but i never needed it to use it. Disadvantages: Difficult to use,forces you to give out your info and then uses it to get your money.Ingenuine
Well I'm not into online chats and friends and all these stuffs but I's persuaded to join by a friend who lives in another country so we could send free text.So I though what grea idea?Well it wasn't.
Their interface was totally useless.It never keeps you informed about anything.You send messages that's never sent and you aren't told what's happened.You aren't told you have to register your phone to send messages via the website even when you're ... ...phone they sign you up for all their services without your knowledge or consent.Shouldn't you be able to choose the services you want to sign up for and those you don't?Nope! They start bugging you with daily friends requests of same person that are simply phoney IMO.
I never sent a single text in my 6months as I never logged in again after my first week until my last week to stop the daily friend requests.Then i realised they'd been charging me ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful