Text me for free! (Cbfsms.com)

Member Name: dididave

Product:	Cbfsms.com
Date:	06/05/09 (166 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Simple to use, genuinely free, no spamming, delivery reports

Disadvantages: Error messages, no phonebook, pop-ups.

When my phone died I had no way of keeping in touch with my nearest and dearest until I discovered you can see SMS text messages for free online. However, trawling through the sites available is a bit of a minefield and often these free sites have huge catches or require subscription. Cbfsms.com is one of only two sites I have found (fonetastic being the other one) where the catches are acceptable and do not involve hidden costs and spamming your phone or email inbox.

The site itself is a little garish but has a very simple and intuitive layout. There are a few banner ads at the top and bottom of the pages but they are neither intrusive or inappropriate. The site navigates fluently and quickly and I have yet to see any downtime or glitching. Reassuringly, it works perfectly in firefox which gives me good vibes about site security and stability. Sending a text via the site is very simple and free for the UK. An online form requires you to fill in the mobile number you wish to send to (minus the 0) and then you have 137 characters of message available. This is more than adequate for my needs but you may not want to wax lyrical as this results in you needing to send multiple messages. You can only send one message at a time and pressing on send leads you to a page which previews your message and a tagline, "Free SMS at cbfsms.com". This is the only advertisement the receive will get and as someone who has used the site frequently, I can attest that the people I have sent messages too have never received any other messages or spam so it appears secure. You might want to include your name with your message though or your friends might be confused!

The preview page does have the only real catch to the service clearly displayed. You have three boxes to tick before you send your message. You can have a delivery confirmation message to the site. If you tick here you are given a code that allows you to check the status of your message sent. I always click this box and can check if my message is pending or sent very easily. I can also choose to receive replies directly to cbfsms.com and receive a code to access this also making this also secure. An added benefit to this is I am guaranteed another outgoing message. I will get to why this is such a bonus. Lastly comes the catch. You have to agree not to use pop up blocking software on the site. Cbfsms.com relies heavily on pop up advertising for it's revenue. As such if you don't allow pop-ups, your message will not send. It is a catch but you do only get one or two pop unders per message so it is not a huge issue for me. When you press send the message goes almost instantly and is often received at least as quick as if you send it from a network.

Unfortunately, the main problem with the site is you are not always able to send your message. When the site is busy you can get an error message and be told to try again in up to ten minutes as VIP members and those who have opted in to replies get priority. This can be very frustrating! This is were the receiving replies option becomes very worthwhile. Your messages then get priority and utilising this option means your messages will nearly always send. Invaluable if you are going to be using the site for any serious length of time as receiving the error message seems to become increasingly frequent the more you use it.

I also like the fact that the site also takes abuse seriously. You can have your, or other peoples number blocked from the service simply by filling out an online form and again, this makes this seem like a very secure service. Unfortunately, if you want to send multiple messages you would need to sign up the VIP service which also offers extended messages although at five pence per message and without a stored phonebook feature, I don't think it warrants the expense.

The lack of a phonebook on site for your numbers is a minor issue but is perhaps one of the main reasons why this is a short term use site. It is great for the odd message when your phone is dead and the minor drawbacks are outweighed by the fact it is totally free. However, I would consider it too limited and frustrating for long term use. This isn't a site which will replace your phone but it is worthy of a bookmark in the event of phone death.

Summary: Worth bookmarking.