“Texting,” as the young whippersnappers call it, was huge in Asia and Europe
before it began catching on in the United States. These days, however, it’s
increasingly popular, especially among teenagers and twentysomethings.
SMS stands for Short Messaging Service. An SMS text message is a very short
note (under 160 characters—a sentence or two) that you shoot from one cellphone
to another. What’s so great about it?
Like a phone call, it’s immediate. You get the message off your chest right
now.
As with email, the recipient doesn’t have to answer immediately. He can
reply at his leisure; the message waits for him even when his phone is
turned off.
Unlike a phone call, it’s nondisruptive. You can send someone a text
message without worrying that he’s in a movie, in class, in a meeting, or
anywhere else where talking and holding a phone up to the head would
be frowned upon. (And the other person can answer nondisruptively,
too, by sending a text message back.)
You have a written record of the exchange. There’s no mistaking what
the person meant. (Well, at least not because of voice quality. Whether
or not you can understand the texting shorthand culture that’s evolved
from people using no-keyboard cellphones to type English words—“C U
2morrO,” and so on—is another matter entirely.)
All AT&T iPhone accounts include 200 free text messages per month (although
you can upgrade your account—meaning pay more—if you send more than
that). Keep in mind that you use up one of those 200 each time you send or
receive a message, so they go quickly.
