Picking up a small update taking it to v3.5 is GroupMe, the group messaging service that spans a number of mobile platforms, including Windows Phone. Along with the obligatory bug fixes, this new version brings a reworked user interface, better management of incoming messages, the ability to open URLs, a 'news flow', and a few more tricks to make the app quicker and easier to use.

Here's the change log, direct from the app listing:

• A cleaner, better chat interface
• Likes!
• A news feed
• Tappable URLs
• Pinch & zoom on pics
• Hide individual messages
• Mark all messages as read
  

One of GroupMe's biggest strengths is the strong cross-platform support it has - it's unlikely a decent sized group of people will all have standardised on one OS, so it's important for communication based apps to run on everything... which is true for GroupMe. I reviewed GroupMe after using it successfully around Austin during the SXSW Interactive festival this year, and found an application that might not be a must-have for everyone, but works well in a number of situations:

[GroupMe] is a secondary application, sitting alongside email and messaging, and it's not going to appeal every one. A lot depends on the groups you interact with and if you need a cross platform group texting facility it's one of the smoothest solutions. Don't reject GroupMe out of hand, have a play around with it and see if it works for you and your friends.

You can download your copy from the AAWP App Directory, and sign up in the application to the GroupMe service.