About chat

Google's chat network lets you send and receive instant messages with friends, family, and colleagues. Exchange real time notes and emoticons with anyone on the network using Gmail, iGoogle, orkut, Google Talk, or a third-party client.
All you need to chat is a Google Account. You can either create a new Google Account or use an existing one. That's it! Once you've signed up, sign in with your Google Account to one of the following and start chatting:

• Gmail
• iGoogle
• orkut
• Google Talk
• A third-party client

Note: A Gmail account is required to use Google Talk or other download clients. Sign-up for a Gmail account now.
If you'd rather communicate face to face with your friends, you can do that too using the free voice and video chat feature in Gmail, iGoogle and orkut. To start voice and video chatting with your friends, simply download the voice and video chat plug-in. Your friends can be anywhere in the world, and you can talk for as long as you want.
You can also chat with people on other networks that support open server-to-server federation or with AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) buddies in Gmail. To get started with AIM, sign into your AIM account in Gmail chat.
If you are using Gmail, all chats are saved and searchable by default. Learn more about chat history.