JustChat.co.uk www.justchat.co.uk/ Review

Overall Rating

Popular community, Free, Addictive

Occassional abuse, Addictive!

I have been using JustChat.co.uk website for about two years now, so thought I would add my opinions here.

Just Chat is a community site which seems to have a UK focus. As a result, most of its members are from the UK, however, I often come across others from the USA, Australia and elswhere.

The primary focus of the site is on its chat rooms which can be used without registering. The chat system used is java-based so usually no software downloads are needed to get chatting. This make the chat section of the site very easy to use and access. Unfortunately, this can also be a problem as abusers can find it easy to gain access and cause trouble. In an attempt to reduce this problem, the website has a team of chat guides who are often on duty to help new chatters and deal with any abuse which may occur. I have to say that whilst the site does need more chat guides and can at times struggle with abuse, it is one of the 'cleanest' and friendliest chat sites I have come across. As a free service, I think its site owners should be proud.

Obviously chat safety is something the media are scrutinising recently. This webite makes it clear it is only for those over the age of 18. As well as offering safety advice throughout the site, it states any users under 18 or considered to be using the site to initiate chat of a sexual nature will be ejected. Quite a refreshing approach, in my opinion.

Moving onto the next section of the site, we come to the message boards. these were introduced relatively recently - around October 2003 I believe. Already they have close to 1,500 members with hundreds of postings each and every day from subjects as intellectual as politics, to ridiculous threads about what shoes people are wearing.

Again, the site moderates the message boards and offensive or abusive posts are rare. Due to the popularity of the site, often I find I am deluged with 'useless' posts which are just pure drivel! However, recently a new section of the boards has opened which is dedicated to current affairs and serious posts and this makes the boards far more interesting and enjoyable to use.

Moving onto the newest feature of the site, we come to the email penpals (epals) section. I find this section refreshing as at no stage are you asked for money or joining fees. Quite simply, you sign-up with an email address and select a few interests and write a short blurb about yourself. You can then post your profile on the site and search for other potential penpals with similar interests. The site makes it clear that the epals section is not designed for dating - rather it is designed for finding friendship. The penpals section is extremely easy to use and all profiles are manually checked before going live on the site. As a result I have not yet come across any offensive or sexual content.

In general, I feel Just Chat is a great site to use and I am glad I came across it. It is easy to use and takes what it does seriously. As a free site, it offers so much more than many sites which ask for membership fees. It addresses safety issues with clear advice, contains a clear privacy policy and is always encouraging its members for new ideas for future development.

As a community site, it does rely on the input and interaction of its members. As a result, problems can occur at times with abuse however, in general I feel the site is an inviting place to be and I have lost a great deal of my online time there. I can only see this site improving over time with new features. Be warned - it can be addictive!

Members' Comments onchatpen's Review

• ConfusedJC on 10th May 2004

  There is no-one at JC called 'Chatpen' ... this review is self made!!

• chatpen on 11th May 2004

  My apologies - I was unaware I had to join this website with the same name as that which I use on Just Chat. Indeed I want to keep the two identities seperate, and hope future comments will at least consider this before posting a negative feedback.

• ConfusedJC on 12th May 2004

  Ok Martin or PB! At least get a user to review it and not the owner or 'staff'!

• bilko on 2nd Aug 2004

  I regularly use and enjoy www.justchat.co.uk website. It does suffer from abuse from time to time but compared to the number of people that use the site I think it is bearable. I have made many great friends from this site, and for it to be completely free is a rarity these days. The staff do seem to work hard in making the site pleasant for all - I am a converted member!

• blonde blue on 21st Oct 2004

  I couldn`t agree more with the comments about the friendliness of Just Chat. I`ve been using the chatrooms and the message boards for a fair few months now and its great. I`ve made some brilliant friends as a result of using this site. There is occasionally the odd trouble maker who thinks its funny to abuse people who use the site but luckily enough most people are intelligent enough to use the ignore option we have in the rooms. I`ve used a couple of other sites before but definately find Just Chat the friendliest and best so far. There are numerous forums on the message boards and we have a really good selection of people who help with technical problems, as well as nice helpful Guides and Hosts.
  I`d have no hesitation in recommending this site to anyone.

• sacramento on 18th Mar 2007

  Don't believe the hype - it is a terrible site and can only get WORSE over time! It is full of perverts and racist idiots!