Has IM made us more spontaneous?

I have a friend who refuses to get a Blackberry, which, I suppose is somewhat understandable. He has an iPhone (far cooler, I guess, to the point where I will be joining i-Ness in the very near future). But, he also refuses to download an instant messenger app like WhatsApp because he doesn't believe that people need to be able to get hold of him 24/7, and if it really is an emergency, they can phone him, or send him a message on Facebook. As a loyal BBM-er, or IM-er at the very least, I struggle to wrap my head around this.

My loyal curve

The point of advancing technology is to make life faster, simpler, easier, and, I find in many cases, cheaper. Because I've grown to have full on chats with people, one message isn't enough, it will be a stream of conversation, otherwise I guess I would just send an Email. So when I want to talk to someone who is not connected like this, I have to spend money on many messages, when I already spend money on data, and the phone itself. I am not saying I resent having to spend money to talk to this person, but it really is an inconvenience.

Another thing I do: because IM is instant, I'll type out a message and press enter to send it. When I have to send a text (SMS), I press send, before considering if that's all that I wanted to say in the message. And if I forget to mention something, I have to send another message (which is fine over IM), but which costs money, again. There is just such a commitment to the sending of a message: are you sure you've said everything that you needed to? The length of the message is limiting as well.

I really enjoy the instant nature of the IM. Particularly with BBM, if I see someone's update, it nudges me to talk to them; it's a conversation starter. It's also easier to make plans with someone if you can do it via a conversation: plans can be adapted and moulded as you learn about what the other person is available to do, or even as inspiration hits, or when brainstorming for plans. You don't have to commit to an idea or solid invitation, but you can play things by ear a lot more.

I'm not saying this is impossible to do without IM. But I find that I am less likely to message someone randomly if they aren't quickly and easily available. I find it with my friends as well. It's easier to get things done faster in this evermore connected world, and I feel that we should take advantage of it where we can.