IceChat calls itself “The Chat Cool People Use,” and it doesn't really sound like a tall claim after all. IceChat is an extremely lightweight yet pretty capable IRC client, and will have you chatting in a matter of seconds. Simply enter a nickname, choose an IRC server to connect to, and you’re golden. There are numerous pre-configured global servers you can connect to. Apart from that, you can configure custom server settings too. Then there’s the fact that it’s totally free, so if you don’t want to shell out anything, you can go for IceChat with closed eyes.

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IceChat is heavily customizable, and you can tweak everything from the chat fonts and the background colours, to the nickname lists and the global application themes. All the other standard features such as multiple server & channel support, custom notifications, VBS (Visual Basic Scripting) based scripting for automating tasks etc. are also there. However, what differentiates IceChat from the previously discussed (and amazing nevertheless) are numerous plug-ins available for it. These plug-ins make it possible to do everything from running Google searches to following Twitter feeds, straight from IceChat. You can check and download all the plug-ins available forIceChat at http://www.icechat.net/site/downloads/download.php?category=4.

 

Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP.

 

Price: Free