WebProNews

Gmail chat has come to iGoogle. This means users will be able to chat with their friends and associates without leaving the comfort of their Google homepage.

The feature is not a gadget like most of your iGoogle features. The chat feature comes in the form of a sidebar and resides below the left-hand navigation menu.

The chat feature is not on everyone's page yet. It is currently showing up for a large set of Google users, but those who do not have it yet can simply go here and opt-in to get it.

Users who already use Gmail chat will find that their same settings will apply here. The most important thing to note however, is that you will not be limited to chatting only with Gmail users. You can invite friends from other services to join your list.

Google acknowledges that there are still some bugs with the feature and requests the patience of users while they work them out. "Here at Google, it's common practice for us to involve our users as early possible so we can make sure we get it right," says Google Talk Engineer Rhett Robinson.

Of course users who do notice bugs can report them, and Google is always open to additional feedback as well. At this point the chat feature is rolling out in English for US users, but other languages and countries will soon follow. More on the chat feature here.