Send and receive SMS messages from the Windows Vista Sidebar with Nokia Text Messenger

Nokia has released a beta version of its new Text Messenger application for Windows Vista and it’s now gadget that sits in the Vista Sidebar. Nokia reckons it’ll work with all Nokia handsets that are compatible with its free PC Suite application, but you’ll need version 6.85 or later installed and running.

There's a quick guide on getting it up and running after the cut.

In case you’re wondering, Text Messenger lets you send and receive SMS messages from the comfort of your PC, as long as you’re able to connect it to your mobile phone. If you were looking for an excuse to install Windows Vista, this probably isn’t it, not least since you can do the same thing in Windows XP with the Nokia PC Phone application.

If you don’t have it already, download and install Nokia PC Suite and establish a connection to your mobile phone. You’ll need a PC with Bluetooth or infrared, or a suitable data cable for your particular handset.

Install the Text Messenger application, then start the Windows Vista Sidebar (unless it’s already running).

Right-click an empty area of the Sidebar and select Add Gadgets. Drag the Nokia Text Messenger gadget to the Sidebar and confirm any Bluetooth requests on your mobile phone.

The gadget will pick up the latest text messages from your handset and display them in the Sidebar. Just hover the mouse over one to see the full message, or click one to see the message with additional options – including Reply.

The Sidebar gadget only displays three messages at a time – use the arrows on its bottom edge to scroll through them. You can create a new message by clicking the icon at the bottom left of the gadget.

Drag the gadget off the Sidebar and you get a bigger window that displays five messages at a time.