GroupMe - New Android and feature phone app

At SXSW a new program was introduced, GroupMe. I have downloaded and installed it and I have found it very useful already. With GroupMe you create groups of friends or family by their cell numbers. Then you can text to one phone number, which GroupMe gives you, and all of your group get the message. This server even works on non-smart phones. So you can go online, create the account, get your conference phone number, then you can text this number to communicate with all of your friends. So far the app and service are free. I do not yet know what the business model for this is, but I like it so far. You can also call the number and ring all your friends at once. Pretty cool. The site for GroupMe is http://groupme.com/ Give it a try. They have an app for Android and for iPhone.

Using the App
Once you create your group, the interface on Android phones looks similar to a chat session. Or the messaging interface that came with Android 2.2. You see the pictures of those you are chatting with and their messages in cartoon balloons. Reply to the session and everyone in your group gets the message. When they reply all see their reply back. It is great.