Text messaging on your tablet via your Android phone

When you hear the name ClockworkMod, you instantly associate it with the custom recovery that almost all Android phones are using. Though ClockworkMod Recovery is certainly very handy, that isn’t the only thing Koushik Dutta, also known as ClockworkMod, has contributed to the Android community. ROM Manager, Bionic Recovery Bootstrap, ClockworkMod Tether (no root), and DeskSMS are just some of the apps he’s offering on the Google Play Store.

Some of you may already be familiar with his other apps, but DeskSMS, in particular, is an app worth noting because it allows users to send texts from their device’s phone number via Google Talk, Gmail, or their browser. You read that right. When someone sends your phone a message, you can take that conversation into a GTalk window. Imagine not having to text your friend back with your phone’s tiny keyboard! No need to squint at the tiny text or spend time carefully punching in the right letters to reply.

But, what if we’re away from our computers and we’re on our tablets? ClockworkMod created TabletSMS by DeskSMS so that we could enjoy texting our friends without cramping our fingers or the use of a computer.

Setting up TabletSMS is a little complicated. You’ll need to download DeskSMS first for your Android phone. Then you can download TabletSMS for your Android tablet. Register with the same account you used for DeskSMS. Now, on your Android tablet, log in to GTalk.

When a friend sends you an SMS, you’ll be prompted to add a contact that looks like this: “[number]@desksms.appspotchat.com.” Once you’ve added that contact and they’ve appeared on your contact list, sending and receiving messages to that contact is easy. Not only can you read his or her texts and type better on your tablet; you can also leave your phone charging across the room.

I tested TabletSMS on our Nexus 7 test device and installed DeskSMS on our Samsung Galaxy S3. I sent a message from my personal phone to the Galaxy S3’s number and was very happy to find my message appearing in a GTalk window on the Nexus 7. I sent a message from the Nexus 7 twice and both messages arrived promptly on my own phone. With such a short response time, the person you’re texting won’t even know that you’re not actually using your cellphone.

Before you get too carried away, there are a few things you should keep in mind with TabletSMS. First, you’ll need DeskSMS installed on your Android phone. The app is free to download, but it’s only free for the first 13 days of use. After that, you’ll need to purchase DeskSMS. Second, you’ll need to have a Wi-Fi connection in order to send and receive messages on your tablet.

Though you won’t need to be using the same Wi-Fi connection on your tablet as your phone with DeskSMS, you’ll still need the connection to be able to successfully keep in touch with your friends.

If you’re too lazy to get your phone across the room or you want a larger screen when texting with a friend, download TabletSMS for DeskSMS from the Google Play Store today.

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