iChat 6 is unquestionably the best incarnation of iChat to date. But I can't help but notice that iChat often feels a bit out of place in the Apple app ecosystem. With other stock Apple software--Mail, Safari, iTunes--you have other options, but Apple's apps clearly and aggressively compete with their alternatives. It seems that Apple doesn't view Adium as a competitor, though, and that's a shame: For all of iChat's achievements, particularly in regards to video chat, its basic interface lacks well-defined niceties that could make the iChat experience far superior to what it is today.

[Lex Friedman is a staff writer for Macworld.]